THE UK’S

NO.1
JAPANESE
MAZDA ROTARY BUYING GUIDE
IT’S WANKELS ALL ROUND WITH THE RX-7 AND RX-8
TUNING MAG
JAPANESE CARS
AI
BANZ

MAXIMUM
ATTACK!
The 810 BHP
Datsun that
rules WTAC

+
HOME
BLOWN
HEROES
HONDA CIVIC EK
SUZUKI SWIFT SPORT

TO INFINITI
AND BEYOND…
n Supercharged Infiniti G35
n Twin Turbo Nissan 370Z
n RB28 Datsun 240Z
第204号
›››SCOOBY TUNING GUIDE ›››JAPFEST DONINGTON SEPTEMBER 2018
Issue 203 £4.99
WELCOME ISSUE 204 September 2018

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TOP CONTRIBUTORS...
Adam Rous
Troy Barker
Chris Nicholls
Ben Hosking
Dan Bevis
Viktor Benyi

I
NEXT ISSUE ON SALE:
Friday 31st August 2018
n, the last issue I distinctly remember saying creating this aura around forced induction too. Sure,
how thrilled I was that summer was here. And the Europeans slapped a few turbos on BMWs and CAN’T FIND THE MAG?
you know what? Nothing’s changed. In fact, Porsches, and the UK had the odd Cossie tuned to Locate your nearest stockist on
we’ve had one hell of a season so far, and 300 or 400bhp… but, at the same time, the guys in http://seymour.magzene.com
while I don’t like to go all typically British and Japan were knocking out Supras with well into four
spend my entire existence banging on about figures, and then driving them to work! The truth is
the weather, it’s been bleedin’ scorchio! that no one has done as much for the love of boost
But don’t worry, we’re not doing another issue as the Japanese car industry. History is littered with Kelsey Media, Cudham Tithe Barn,
about the summer, we had plenty of that the last more forced induction legends from Japan than Berrys Hill,Cudham, Kent, TN16 3AG
time around. In fact, although we’ve got a bumper anywhere else. Turbo Starlets, supercharged MR2s Part of the Fast Car Entertainment
Japfest Donington report over on pg24, in which I’ve - even Daihatsu couldn’t help but bung a blower on Family www.fastcar.co.uk
reiterated that it’s been a little warm of late, this issue their Charade - they were all at it! And this issue is
is all about celebrating something just as hot, and dedicated to… well, none of ‘em.
that’s the world’s finest home-blown heroes. No, while tuning factory-boosted cars is something
You see, ever since there were internal combustion we highly recommend, that’s never been enough for
engines, people have been trying to eek more power
out of them. Of course, they started simply by making
some. These are the guys that take a great car and
say “I know what will make this better.” And, whether
SUBSCRIBE TO
them bigger, right up until some clever bugger that’s lumping in a whole new engine, as in the case
realised that, if you cram in more air, you can bung of the WTAC monster on the cover, or fitting a turbo
in more fuel and ultimately get more power. Forced
induction was born and the world was suddenly
or supercharger conversion like the Civic and G35
later on in the mag, there’s always been something AND SAVE
a better place. Well, okay, it wasn’t quite like that, cool, if a little naughty, about boosting a car that’s GO TO PAGE 82
turbos and superchargers took a long, long time supposed to be N/A. Especially the ones you don’t
THE UK’S
NO.1 MEG
NG GUIDE A MX-5 BUYING GUID
DA ROTARY BUYI
JAPANESE
TUNING MAG EVERY MAZD
E
NO.1SE MAZ
THE UK’S RX-7 AND
RX-8 A ROADSTER
WITH THE EVER!
S ALL ROUND
CARS
JAPANESE

ZAI
expect - Suzuki Swift Sport anyone?
IT’S WANKEL

to catch on with the car manufacturers, but, once

JAPANE
TUNING MAG JAPANESE

BAN
CARS
BANZAI

we got to the ‘80s and ‘90s, the age of the boost Anyway, that’s the features, and there’s some other RARITY
MAXIMUM VALUE
tweaker had finally come. Not only did we see some cool stuff too, not least a Wankel buying guide, some AT810TACK!BHP
WORLD’S FIRST
ROCKET BUNNY
VARIETTA TURBO

of the most prolific blown cars blast on to the scene, quick-fire Subaru tuning and a road test that
The
Datsun that
rules WTAC

+
but it didn’t take long for people to realise winding shows what happens when Nissan + ULTIMATE
CLUTCH
HOME TECH
up the boost was a good idea too. It’s pretty obvious engineers go a little batty! Enjoy
WN
BLO AND… 350
HEROES Z
TUNING GUIDE
CIVIC EK
HONDATOP
SUZUKI SWIFT TURBO’D
SPORT

DROP-TO
that Japanese cars were the most instrumental in the issue and rest of the summer… TO INFINITI
AND BEYO ND… G35
n Insane
n Carbon
n Slamme
PS
Nissan S15
Toyota MR-S
d
n Choppe Honda S2K
d Datsun
260Z
arged Infiniti
n Superch Nissan 370Z
n Twin Turbo 240Z
第204号 ›››555BHP SUBAR
TON
SEPTEMBER
2018
U ›››HOND 第203号
A S660 ROAD
Issue 203 £4.99
n RB28 Datsun
GUIDE ›››JAPFEST DONING 001 BNZ0918
Cover AUG.final.indd 09:26
TEST AUGUST 2018

›››SCOOBY TUNING
23/07/2018
1 Issue 203 £4.99

1
Cover Sept.mge1.indd 25/06/2018
001 BNZ1018 15:45

MIDGE - EDITOR SHELL - ART EDITOR SAM - CONTRIBUTOR MARTIN - ADS BLOKE
“The best forced induction “Never mind all that… Midge, “I’ll get one as soon as I’m old “Do you think I should strap a
motor ever? Hmmm, either the can you turbocharge your enough to afford the insurance. ‘charger to my Jazz, or just buy
R32 GT-R… or my Navara.” backside and get your copy in?” Too young and spritely me!” another Civic and turbo that?”

It only took Midge 15-years
doing every job in the car
magazine business to finally
get the one he wanted. Loves
tuning, hates trying to spell.
Michelle not only does an
amazing job on the ‘look’ of the
mag, but she’s one of the very
few that can keep the boys in
line too. Well, most of the time.
Sammy P esquire writes more
features than anyone else, but
will still do absolutely anything
to get out of work and out on
the track. Fair play we say.
He may flog advertising space
for a living, but he drives an EP3
Type R (well, until he blew it up),
so we’ll have to let him off. He’s
also an MMA champion. No lie.

September 2018 005

 CONTENTS

HOME-BLOWN HEROES 010

010  ON THE COVER: DATSUN 240Z
There’s a lot of Japanese legends that spring
to mind when talking about World Time
Attack, but the Datsun 240Z isn’t one of them.
It would have to have 800bhp… oh, it has!

034 STREET SPECIAL: ‘CHARGED G35

This one’s got all the show and, thanks to a
spot of Vortech fettling, it’s got all the go too!

058 TWIN TURBO TERROR: 370Z TT

Why take one turbo into the shower when
you can take two? That’s the spirit of this
UK-based, 500bhp monster… well, sort of.

098 ED’S WILD CARD: SWIFT TURBO

Yes this turbocharged Suzuki racecar is quite
a thing to behold, and well worthy of the
pages of Banzai. In this month’s Wild Card
spot though, we’d mostly like to pay homage
to the owner - racing legend Hideki Maeda.


HOME-BUILT (& BLOWN) HERO
066 HONDA CIVIC TURBO
This B20 Civic may not have a VTEC… but it
has got a bloody-great blower!

REGULARS 018
017 Events Preview
Find out what’s coming up this season.

018 ROAD TEST: Prototype 350Z

Who built this monster? Nissan actually!

023 Banzai Legends

Weird swaps and Japanese legends.

030 New Products

If you want it, go buy it. Simple enough.

105 Skidmarks
Pub ammo and more team randomness. 030

041
058

034
006 www.banzaimagazine.com
 ISSUE 204 SEPTEMBER 2018

SUBSCRIBE
& SAVE CASH 085
Check out our OUT THERE
latest subscription
deals on pg82 024 JAPFEST DONINGTON
One of the best events of the season
takes over Donington Park. Here’s
exactly what went down…

098 KNOWLEDGE
041 TECH TALK: Turbos
Well what were you expecting in an
issue all about forced induction? A
grease-down and a shiatsu?

048 Quick-fire Tuning

This month we tackle an all-time
classic. It’s the old skool Scooby.

051 Chop Shop PCD Guide

Swapping your wheels? Here’s all the
info you’ll ever need.

BANZAI BUILDS
072 Staff Builds
Time for more of our questionable
projects… and a nice one built
especially for you lot.

080 Your Builds

These are your pages so keep those
awesome projects coming in!

085 Wankel Buying Guide

An engine without pistons! What
will they think of next? Here’s our
guide to bagging your very own
rotary-powered stormer.

066 048 093 Classifieds

Right here could be lurking your very
next project. To be fair, we’d rather
like to buy them all!

WHAT DO YOU WANT

TO SEE IN THE MAG?
Give the team a shout on
Banzai.ed@kelsey.co.uk

September 2018 007

 DATSUN 240Z

BECAUSE
Time Attack is simple: put down the fastest time possible around
a track, meaning the most important choice for the driver is
ensuring they build the right car. So why did Paul Henshaw here
decide a 47-year-old Datsun was just the thing for the job?!
Words and photos: Troy Barkern

T
he crazy world of Time Attack is
one of the fastest growing corners
of the motorsport community.
It’s not hard to see why, either
– it’s exciting, challenging and
accessible to a huge range of
cars and drivers with different skill levels.
The actual sport itself is very simple: you
have a limited number of laps to set the
fastest time you possibly can in the ultimate
pursuit of speed. The field is generally
comprised of the likes of insane aero-clad
Evos, WRXs, Skylines, Civics, AE86s and
Silvias, so it clearly makes for an odd sight to
see a 47-year-old Datsun 240Z being thrown
around the track at the same time. What’s
even more surprising is the fact that this one
is remarkably competitive with the rest of the
too. Then again, it is packing an 800-odd-
horsepower RB28 motor, so that may have
something to do with it…
The first question we just had to ask
Aussie-based owner Paul then, was - why a
240Z for this wild motorsport? Surely there
were easier options out there? “For me it
was never about winning; I just don’t have
the available funds or skill level to be on the
podium,” he lays it out, revealing that his
priorities list was more concerned with other
factors. “The choice of car has therefore
always been about what I love the look of.”
Owning his own restoration business, Paul
is keen to stress what an effective promotional
tool running such an old chassis competitively
has been. “Wherever the car goes it gets
great coverage so that tends to also give the
sponsors great value for money,” he admits,
continuing to explain that Time Attack seems
to be either about winning or getting good
exposure with a unique car.
Getting the Datsun to a competitive stage
involved a little more than bolting some
Webers to the side of an L-Series engine
though. Paul picked it up as an unfinished
project that had the roll cage already set
up, so it was already destined for the track.
A stock Skyline RB26 lump and five-speed
gearbox were jammed into the Z at first,

010 www.banzaimagazine.com
RACECAR

September 2018 011

 DATSUN 240Z

MASSIVE ATTACK
Paul’s Z was initially built for the world-famous and absolutely bonkers WTAC [World
Time Attack Challenge] Sydney event.
Not heard of this annual gathering of epic machines? Imagine some of the craziest
aero-clad cars known to man (just like this 240Z here, actually), all battling it out to try
and smash the fastest outright time around the Sydney Motorsport Park circuit.
The event has attracted plucky car builders from all over the world, including the likes
of Scotland’s Andy Forrest with his frankly mental Subaru Impreza (that’s quite possibly
the fastest in the land), and even Keiichi ‘Drift King’ Tsuchiya himself.
Oh, and in case you’re still not looking at tickets for this year’s event in October, the
fact there’s also the Honeywell Garrett drift challenge featuring some of the planet’s
finest skidders should sweeten the deal!

A whopping 810bhp
and 640lb/ft on
the Dyno

012 www.banzaimagazine.com
meaning it was soon ready for some local
hillclimb and track events. However, things
didn’t last long in that configuration – as any
self-respecting racer will understand, when
you’re pushing things to the limit, they tend
to break easier, so that started the ‘break
and upgrade’ cycle that swiftly followed.
Firstly, the stock RB26 was removed
and a mildly modified replacement put in
its place, which unfortunately led to the
gearbox breaking due to the extra power.
The cog-shifter was then replaced with an
HGT Precision sequential six-speed race box
that’s fully machined from a single aluminium
billet and houses a full constant mesh set of
gears. This is one part we’re pretty sure Paul
isn’t going to have to replace anytime soon!
Nine laps into Sydney’s World Time Attack
Challenge of 2014, though, the mild RB26
decided to throw in the towel. Paul then
approached PMC Race Engines to build him
a bulletproof replacement. The final result
was this ‘RB28’ that you see before you
now. The RB26 was stroked to 2.8 litres and
received extensive headwork, with practically
no aspect of the internals missing out on the
royal treatment.
Extra power delivery comes from the
massive ID2000 fuel injectors, a MoTeC CDI
module and Mercury coils. A MoTeC M800
is the brain of the operation that’s set up to
maximise the RB28’s potential across the
rev range. Finally, a BorgWarner EFR8374
turbo and a Hypertune intercooler caps so
everything off. So, what’s the final score?
A whopping 810bhp and 640lb/ft on the
dyno. Which last time we checked was ever
so slightly more than the original L24 was
putting out!
Obviously with a heap of power,
something substantial was now needed to
stop the car, so big six-piston AP Racing
brakes were set up on the front and four-
piston Wilwoods found their way onto the
rear. Supershock bespoke coilovers, Arizona
Z-Car billet arms and RAYS TE37 alloys keep
this thing on the ground and provide some
much-needed adjustability to the chassis,
which is still very much a factory 240Z at
its core. In fact, it even retains the factory
suspension points and geometry because
of the regulations of the class that Paul
competes in.
Outside is where some of the biggest
‘wows’ are now present though. A simply
immense amount of carbon fibre is now
attached to every portion of the car. “The
aero has sort of escalated as everything
else has. Freddy at Topstage Composites
has been instrumental throughout the entire
time I’ve owned the car. Being a massive Z
fan himself, he saw the potential and started
helping with sponsorship and designing aero
parts to make the car what it is now.”
The aero started small with the bobtail
spoiler and splitter, but then snowballed
into the full-fat package you see before you,
where every part serves a purpose. Some
pieces are for simple weight reduction but
the majority is designed to help bring some
much-needed downforce for the 47-year-
old body design. The currently bonnet vent
setup is designed to get airflow through
to the radiator, however it’s a temporary
measure as Freddy is currently designing a
full carbon fibre part to replace it with. He
needs every advantage he can get to push
this car around the track in the fastest time
possible, and all this aero plays a big role.
Inside, the Z is about as ‘racecar’ as you
can get. A bare-bones interior cuts out as
much unnecessary weight as possible and
makes it very clear this machine was built for
one thing - going as fast as possible. Aside
from the roll cage the first thing you notice is
that there’s even more carbon in the form of
a basic dash that houses the MoTeC display.
From there your eyes wander to the various
essentials for, as Paul puts it, “keeping me
alive”. Last, and easily missed at first glance,
September 2018 013
 DATSUN 240Z
is the period Velo race seat that has been
trimmed to match the original 240Z interior.
Perhaps the most important aspect of
this build for Paul was to retain the ‘soul’ of
the original Zed. As heavily modified as it is,
any enthusiast can tell that underneath all
the carbon and aero is a still a proud 240Z
at its core, which is something he did not
want to lose. A critical identifier is the chrome
bumpers which, until recently, were original
steel items, although they have since been
replaced with fibreglass pieces for weight
reduction. Paul had these carefully chrome
014 www.banzaimagazine.com
wrapped to resemble the original bumpers.
“I love the classic look, and yes it has all this
carbon on the car, but if you take the chrome
bumpers off it just doesn’t look the same,” he
muses. It’s things like the chrome bumpers,
original lights and a seat trimmed to match
the original interior that make sure you know
exactly what you’re looking at: an old 240Z.
Oh and how about the OG Japanese plate on
the rear? That’s not coming off anytime soon.
The fact that Paul runs his restoration shop
shines through when you look at the finish
and quality of this 240Z. Yes, it’s very much a
serious track car, but each and every corner
has been crafted with the finest care that only
someone with Paul’s background could
accomplish. We’re glad Paul chose to build a
240Z for the purpose of Time Attack
challenges, because no doubt it’s one of the
most impressive and unique builds we’ve had
the pleasure of laying eyes on. If you ever get
across to Australia to encounter this car in the
flesh (or you know how to work YouTube -
Midge) you will understand what we mean - it
simply demands your attention, and rightly so,
it’s an outright masterpiece.
 TECHSPEC
ENGINE: 2.8-litre RB26-based stroked
engine built by PMC Race Engines, extensive
high-compression headwork with beryllium
seats, custom cams and shim-less buckets,
BorgWarner EFR 8473 turbocharger, ID2000
fuel injectors, MoTeC CDI, Mercury coils,
Hypertune intake and intercooler, PWR
radiator, HGT Precision six-speed sequential
gearbox, Winters quick-change 10-inch diff

CHASSIS: 7.5x17-inch (front) and 10x17-

inch (rear) RAYS TE37-VSL alloy wheels,
custom Supershock coilovers, Arizona Z-Car
billet arms, AP Racing six-piston (front)
Wilwood four-piston (rear) disc brake setup

INTERIOR: Re-covered Velo bucket seat to

resemble 240Z trim, full roll cage, Topstage
Composites carbon fibre dashboard, MoTeC
CDL display

EXTERIOR:Topstage Composites carbon

fibre bonnet and V3 aero package

THANKS: “Custom and Classic Cars, CCC

Racing, HGT Precision Gearboxes, PMC
Race Engines, Topstage Composites, TC
Race Fabrications, MDR Motorsport, Jazmac
Performance, Jack and Shane, and of course
the missus!”

Most important was to

retain the soul of the
original Zed

September 2018 015

MAXIMISE Evans Power Cool 180° keeps our
engines cool, reduces pressure on

ENGINE
the cooling system and helps
deliver greater power.

PERFORMANCE
WATERLESS ENGINE COOLANTS

www.evanscoolants.co.uk
visit www.evanscoolants.co.uk for your local stockist facebook.com/EvansCoolants

Specialist in Classic and Sports Car Restoration, Servicing

and Datsun ‘Z’ Cars

Restorations Maintenance Modifications Car Builds

Repairs and modifications, restorations, servicing, full mechanical and bodywork

facilities, large stock of used parts, Safety Device roll cage suppliers, Datsun panels
made to order, standard and competition parts. Historic motorspports preparation.

www.fourways-engineering.co.uk
www.datsun240z.co.uk
Tel: 01732 884288
Email: info@fourways-engineering.co.uk
Fourways Engineering, 10-12 Maidstone Road, Borough Green, Kent, England TN15 8BD
UK EVENTS PREVIEW

Coming soon...

›› Japanese Auto Extravaganza

30th August – 2nd September East of England Arena
www.jae-show.co.uk
EVENTS DIARY
T
he bottom line is that we love
Japanese car culture, including all ›› ULTIMATE STREET CAR
the weird and wonderful stuff that 3–5 AUGUST
comes with it, and that’s exactly Santa Pod
why we absolutely can’t get enough of JAE. www.ultimatestreetcar.com
To be honest, it’s about the craziest event
you’ll ever get to experience here in the UK, ›› NISS SHOW
and the only full-on weekender dedicated to 12 AUGUST
nothing but Japanese metal. Think of it as Rockingham Motor Speedway
more of a modified car festival than a show, @Niss Show 2018 (Facebook)
a Glastonbury for petrolheads, especially the
ones with a couple of screws loose! ›› JAPANESE AUTO EXTRAVAGANZA
There’ll be plenty of cars to check out of 30 AUGUST–
course. What with clubs traveling from all 2 SEPTEMBER
over Europe to be a part of it, there’s always
East of England Arena, Peterborough
an extremely diverse collection on display.
www.japcarclub.org
There’s also the Dodo Juice indoor show and
shine competition and a whole load more.
New cars, classic cars, racecars and just ›› TOUGE IN THE VALLEYS
about everything inbetween. 22–23 SEPTEMBER
But it doesn’t stop there, oh no. You see, Ceredigion, Mid Wales
one of the best things about JAE is all the www.slipandgripautomotive.co.uk
extra stuff going on… and it’s all suitably
bonkers we can tell you that! From the HKS ›› JAPSHOW FINALE
‘It’s a Knockout’ competition to the surreal
outfits everyone wears for the cosplay, it
WHAT’S ON? 23 SEPTEMBER
Santa Pod
has to be one of the strangest weekends n Club Displays www.japshowfinale.com
ever. I mean, where else can you see a load n Indoor Show ‘n’ Shine
of dinosaurs hopping around? Along with n Cosplay ›› TRAX
superheroes, Hello Kitty, unicorns and all n Fireworks 7 OCTOBER
manner of other weird stuff? Well, you can in n Camping Silverstone Circuit
Japan, and that’s the whole point. n Funfair www.traxshows.co.uk
Think you’ve seen it all before? Wait ‘till n HKS It’s a Knockout!
you get a load of this!

September 2018 017

 ROAD TEST NISSAN 350Z GT-S

NISSAN 350Z GT-S [‘06]

What happens when a team of UK

Nissan engineers decide that they
can build a better car than most
aftermarket tuners?
Say hello to the 350z GT-S…
Words: Matt Bell

S
kunkworks: a word used to supercharger kit as an aftermarket extra,
describe after-hours projects but such was the cost of building the car, it
and one-off builds. It’s not often decided instead to focus on the release of the
that manufacturers get involved new 370Z that was unveiled just two years
in this business, but it seems later. This car genuinely belongs to Nissan
Nissan has a sense of humour, and for most of the year it sits in a heritage
not to mention a hankering for more power, centre alongside other beauties from Nissan’s
once in a while too. ancestry. In fact, we can’t believe they
Take this 350Z, for example. Unassuming actually handed over the keys to this unique
to most, it’s got a few choice holes at the piece of motoring history.
front, a slightly wider body, a spoiler at the
back and a set of bronze NISMO five-spoke
alloys. But, apart from that, nothing untoward
is going on, right? Delve deeper though, and
you find that Nissan has tweaked a number
of performance aspects, including installing a
trick supercharger for plenty of added grunt.
Originally a concept car called the 350Z
GT-S, and built for Goodwood’s Festival of
Speed back in 2006, Nissan UK was originally
deliberating as to whether it could offer a

018 www.banzaimagazine.com
The Car
Let’s get one thing straight: Nissan hasn’t simply bolted FAST
FACTS
on a supercharger, whacked the boost up and gained
lashings of extra power nice and easily. Instead, the unit
is a clutch-operated centrifugal blower with a front-mount
intercooler designed for reliability. This is controlled by a
button next to the gear lever which simply says ‘Novidem n The 350Z GT-S
– Kompressor’; Novidem (based in Switzerland) being the was conceived
company that was tasked with building the supercharger. by Nissan’s
With the blower off, it’s just a regular 350z. This is a European
2006 model so it comes with the 301bhp base V6. Switch Technical
the button to ‘on’ though, and an anti-social whoosh centre based in
is released, as you drive by you sound more like some Cranfield, right
sort of air compressor tank. Mash the throttle and you here in the UK.
are pinned back in your seat as the car propels forward
with much more enthusiasm - that’s the beauty of forced n The
induction! Here, the power is boosted to 382bhp and supercharger
torque jumps to around 313lb/ft, making for a much was fitted so
quicker car than stock. In fact, it feels significantly more flush to the
than 382bhp, such is the usability of its power band. engine itself
Essentially Novidem fine-tuned the mapping to produce a that, rather
power curve that’s completely linear and pulls smoothly to impressively,
the rev limit without any spikes. This gives you a constant there was no
shove no matter where you are in the rev range. need to raise the
The exhaust was also modified by Novidem and bonnet line.
features an electronically-operated valve system that is
actuated in relation to engine revs; this then bypasses the n A simple
rear silencer for a far meatier soundtrack. on/off switch
It’s not all raw, though. The main focus around the build near the gear
was to produce a car that had two sides to it; hence the stick instantly
user-controlled supercharger. Nissan included the NVH transforms the
pack (noise, vibration and harshness), which was designed car’s power
to reduce unwanted road noise and dull exhaust noise. from 300bhp to
Inside the options list was pretty much fully-ticked with 382bhp. It’s all a
heated seats, sat-nav, a BOSE sound system and loads of bit Mad Max!
other sought-after bits and bobs.

September 2018 019

 ROAD TEST NISSAN 350Z GT-S
FACT FILE
PERFORMANCE
- 382bhp and 313lb ft of torque
- 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds

ENGINE
3.5-litre VQ35DE V6 engine, Novidem clutch-
operated centrifugal supercharger, front-
mounted intercooler

CHASSIS
18in RAYS NISMO forged monoblock alloy
wheels, Bilstein dampers, Brembo brakes

Chassis and Styling
The chassis on the GT-S was tweaked,
too, thanks to the introduction of Bilstein
components. Instead of fine-tuning the
dampers on the Nordschleife, the team was
said to have set up the car on British B-roads
around Nissan UK HQ at Cranfield. This
actually makes driving this one in the UK more
of a joy than a back-breaking chore.
It also means that you can drive harder
and quicker on back-roads than you would
on a regular set of coilovers. The high-speed
handling was tweaked in Germany on the
Autobahn, and the decision was made to
stick with 18s (instead of 19-inch wheels) for
comfort. The ultra-lightweight, forged NISMO
monoblocks (built by RAYS), were wrapped
in sticky Dunlop Sport 9000 tyres to offer
optimum performance.
The body kit was developed by German
aerodynamic company, Strosek. It claims
that, at 90mph, downforce is improved by
up to 30kg at the front and 60kg at the rear,
depending on how the wing is set. This
kit comprises new front and rear bumper
sections, side skirts and the adjustable
EXTERIOR
Bespoke body kit (comprising new front
and rear bumper sections, side skirts and
adjustable rear wing)
rear spoiler. The re-styled front section
INTERIOR
incorporates a deeper front air dam with an Top-spec leather factory interior with all the
extended splitter and extra cooling ducts for options… and a supercharger switch panel!
the engine and brakes. At the rear, the number
plate indentation has been lowered and now
sits just above the diffuser. Cutaways behind
each rear wheel aid the extraction of hot air
from the brakes.
Each aspect of the car was designed
with the idea of offering individual ‘packs’
to regular cars. So, the supercharger
would come under the ‘engine pack’, the
Bilstein suspension would come under the
‘suspension pack’ and the more aerodynamic
body kit under the ‘aero pack’.
Such was their intentions that Nissan
focused on trying to keep costs down by
modifying as few parts as possible. As a
result, the GT-S retains stock engine internals,
clutch, transmission, propshaft and
driveshafts. What’s good to know for standard
350Z owners too, is that Nissan can be
quoted in saying that the stock components
were so over-engineered that the extra power
hike and torque jump can be handled without
breaking a sweat. Lovely.

Unfortunately, it’s going to be impossible to get your hands on the one single GT-S that was ever created. But
POTENTIAL thankfully, it’s easier than you think to tweak up a standard 350Z to a similar spec using aftermarket parts!

››› SUPERCHARGER ››› WHEELS ››› BODY ››› SUSPENSION

Torqen offers a Vortech
supercharger package
designed specifically for
350Zs. Like the one that
features on the GT-S, it’s a
centrifugal affair that promises
to be fairly straightforward to
get up and running.
www.torqen.uk
Those rather nice, RAYS-built
NISMO rims might break the
bank somewhat, but luckily,
Rota does a very similar style
in the form their best-selling
GTR. The good thing too, is
that they even come in the
same bronze colour. Bonza!
www.rarerims.co.uk
The GT-S has a slightly more
aggressive kit than standard,
and this can be emulated
with one of the many designs
available at Knight Racer. Even
if the GT-S is a bit subtle for
you, they can sort you out. Did
someone say Rocket Bunny?
www.knightracer.com
If you’re cranking up the
power with a supercharger,
it’s probably a good idea to
bolster up your suspension
with a decent set of adjustable
coilovers. BC Racing is a
trusted brand that definitely
won’t let you down.
www.bc-racing.co.uk

020 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Toyota GT86
Resonated Cat Back Exhaust System

Power + 11 bhp

Weight - 5.1 kg

Sound + 7 dB
COBRASPORT.COM

LIVE. BREATHE. PERFORM.

KIGHT RACER_hh 18/11/2014 16:07 Page 1
 LEGENDS

Sacrilegious Swaps
Because everyone
knows the Japanese
make the finest
power plants!

ENGINE: K20A2 VTEC

(Acura RSX)
CAR: 1967 Mini Pickup
OWNER: Linh Bui
Photos: Viktor Benyi

I
n a country where a 16-year old can tool
around in a F350 ‘Dually’, there’s 32-lanes
on the motorway and your average family
motor is about the size of Eddie Stobart’s
finest, driving a classic Mini is a lifestyle
choice that takes some big brass balls.
Now, we’re not saying that we’re Mini fans
as such, but there’s no denying that there’s
been quite the relationship between the
Mini folk and the VTEC community over the
past few decades. Both the B and K-Series
engines have found themselves in plenty
of British baked bean tins over the years,
chiefly because they’re a far better compact
lump than any other offering on the streets.
Usually you’ll find the VTEC cut and shut into
the back too, but what’s interesting about
this one is that it’s an extremely rare Mini
pickup… well, we suppose it is in America -
the land of the rear-bed load-lugger.
Still, you can’t have the engine in the boot
with a pickup, so this K20A2 (from an Acura
RSX) has been expertly dropped into the
front, with the help of a custom subframe
and one-piece front end. We just hope it can
handle the 500% increase in grunt!
It’s not Japanese, but it is lightweight with
TUNING
a VTEC, and that’s always a winning combo!
K20A2 VTEC, custom Mini Tec engine
cradle/mounts, modified cold air intake,
polished RBC inlet manifold, custom
exhaust system, Walbro fuel pump, JER
Developments modified OEM Honda
harness with OEM Honda ECU, USDM
Acura RSX Type S six-speed gearbox.

››ALL TIME GREATS...

››JAPFEST DONNINGTON
Mitsubishi Starion
What better, in an issue all about forced induction, than one of the most underrated turbocharged
motors of all-time? And we’re not just talking about a legend in the Japanese car world either.
Donington Park Circuit Saturday 30 June
The 1980s, 4-pot turbo Starion is all but forgotten now, except in the most exclusive classic car
circles, which is a shame because it was a masterpiece designed to go up against the RX-7
and 300ZX of the day. Technically it had a better drag coefficient than both of these cars too. It
was so good in fact, that the Americans hijacked it, lobbed a Chrysler badge on the boot (and later Dodge and Plymouth
badges) and sold it as a home-grown product called the Conquest. To us though, it will always be the Starion, and the old legend about the
name is always one that makes us smile. You know the story; the Mitsubishi brass wanting an equestrian name like their Colt, or the Ford
Mustang, but the engineers just couldn’t pronounce the word ‘stallion’ properly. Probably a load of old tosh, but a nice story none the less.
Still, what we love most about the Starion, is what it represents. A time when Japanese manufacturers seemed to build stuff just to see
what would happen. “It’s a GT car engineer-san? Okay, just bolt on a huge turbo and you’re good to go.” You’ve just got to love those sort
of trouser potatoes!

September 2018 023

 He even had

SHOW REPORT
the kids in the
back, and all
the luggage…

Japfest
Donington
All sorts were
lining up to More Supras, Skylines, Starlets and sunburn…
get out there
it’s time for Japfest Donington.
Words: Midge Photos: Chris Frosin

N
o w , r e g u l a r Ba n z a i r e a d e r s on some sort of tropical
may think I’m being a right holiday and (apart from the
l a z y b u g g e r b y c o p yi n g getting up at 5am bit), that’s
t h e ‘ Su p r a s a n d s u n b u r n ’ the overwhelming feeling I
b i t a b o ve f r o m t h e J a p f e s t got from Japfest Donington.
Si l ve r s t o n e r e p o r t a c o u p l e They were even flogging Lilt
of m o n t h s a g o ( w h i c h , a d m i t t e d l y, I in the circuit gift shop!
d i d) . Bu t t h e r e r e a l l y i s o n l y o n e w a y t o Of course, what’s even
sa y i t – i t ’ s s t i l l b l o o d y h o t a n d J a p f e s t more important than the
Do n i n g t o n w a s a n a b s o l u t e s c o r c h e r ! weather is that the cars were right up there in
I s w e a r , p a r t s o f m e t h a t s h o u l d n e ve r the high Kelvins too. But that didn’t come as
be mentioned actually melted… it was any sort of surprise, let’s not forget that this is
on e o f t h e h o t t e s t s h o w s o f t h e ye a r . I n one of the biggest outings for the Japanese-
mo r e w a ys t h a n o n e . loving folk ever to hit UK shores.
Yep, there’s no denying we’ve had a Judging by the number of people that
cracking old summer so far. Shit (you’re not packed-out the famous circuit, I’m guessing
supposed to say shit – Sam), even the news that most of you were there to witness this
today, as I write this in July, is saying that it spectacle anyway. But, if you couldn’t make
could hit 35-degrees next week. It’s like being it, here’s some of the stuff you missed…

ON DISPLAY
I’m sure I’ve written this before, so I’m sorry if
I’m banging on about it, but I do think the Japfest
events bring with them the most diversity. It’s like
all those motors that you’re unlikely to see on the
streets make an extra special effort to come out
and play. They also sit in perfect harmony with
the more core motors, modern metal and track
specials to create more variety than any other show
brand. Everyone gets on at the Japfest shows too,
no matter their taste in cars, or how they feel the
need to modify them. The followers of the stance
scene always start drooling over the track bashers,
and suddenly the most hardcore of motorsport
enthusiasts begin considering wide wheels, air ride
Minty Fresh and costly paint jobs. It’s all one big melting pot of
Acty made us the many facets of Japanese car culture and, for
want one, now! me at least, that’s always the biggest attraction.
Once again, Japfest Donington brought with it
a huge selection. I’m guessing there’s not many
places where you can see a juiced Honda Acty, a
jacked-up Hilux and a lowrider-inspired EF Civic
(complete with wire wheels and a Yankee-style
paintjob), all in the same place. The spice of life!

024 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Yes, that is a
Nissan PAO spelt
KA-PAO-W!

LIVE ACTION
You can’t turn up at Donington Park and not
check out what’s happening on the track, that’s
like going to Domino’s and not ordering a stuffed
crust… or watching the Jeremy Kyle show
without wanting to poke him in the eye. It’s just
not the done thing!
Luckily, there was plenty out there to keep us
all entertained, and it wasn’t just hardcore track
cars lining up to take a pop, everything from
daily drivers to estates were out there, and I
swear I saw a bright pink Nissan PAO absolutely
ripping up the track at one point… although I
think I may have imagined it.
Another highlight of the day was the sprint
strip, which also saw a huge variety of models
taking on the clock in FWD, 4WD and RWD
categories. We must have seen more explosive
launches than NASA this time around - it was a
whole day of entertainment in itself!

SPRINT TEST TROPHY WINNERS

FWD – Luke Beard - Honda Civic
4WD – Andrew Haughton - Nissan R33 GTR
RWD – John Vaughan - Nissan Silva

Lowrider style…
…highrider style!

September 2018 025

 Not many Show
and Shine
contenders

SHOW REPORT cam do this…

Iron Man… and a

bloke with a tyre!

LIVE STAGE
They certainly don’t mess about when it comes
to the main stage at Japfest Donington, at first
we thought we’d walked into some sort of music
festival, it was absolutely huge!
They actually had a few bands on during the
course of the day, along with driver interviews and
a Iron Man competition where you had to hold a
wheel up for the longest time. Sod that, eh?
The commentary and trophy-giving this year was
given by Paul from Discovery’s show Turbo Pickers.
He’s a lot taller than he looks on the telly too – the
Jolly Green Giant hasn’t got anything on this fella!

THE BANZAI STAND

We like to put on a top-notch Banzai display at every Japfest event, I know this because, even though I wasn’t the Editor last year, I copped
the job of parking up the cars at 6am. Still, I’m more than happy to miss breakfast and don a rather fetching hi-vis, just so I get to check out
all the motors first. This year of course, I even got to pick what was on display too… perks of the job and all that.
Still, although I’m clearly a bit of a subconscious Civic fan, mostly because we seem to build the most varied selection here in Blighty, there
were a few other amazing cars too - all different models and, most importantly, all different styles.
Here’s what we had on offer in the form of some of our past, present and future feature cars…

Leon Chan’s Varietta Turbo
You’ll no doubt recognise Leon’s drop-top
from the last issue and this rare Rocket
Bunny-kitted monster has had a few tweaks
since the shoot - stuff like a custom rear bar
and even more carbon. Will it ever be totally
finished? We hope not.
Grant Benham’s H22 Civic
We featured Grant’s little EJ4 a few months
back as one of our very first Home-built
Heroes. This one’s packing a 2.2 from a
Prelude VTI, which Grant installed himself. He
was on our stand for about 3-seconds before
he buggered off to hit the track. Good lad!
James Allen’s Civic EJ2 Turbo
Here’s another Civic that couldn’t wait to
get out on the circuit. We like that it’s a EJ2
Coupe, and we love that James decided to
strap a huge blower to the 1.5-litre, non-VTEC
D-series. This has to be the only D15B7 turbo
in the UK, right? You’ll see more of one soon.

Tony Beesla’s Nissan GT-R
As if Nissan’s supercar-slayer isn’t bonkers
enough, Tony’s gone full-batshit on his one.
Featuring a custom carbon fibre kit, a flippy-
trippy wrap and some of the biggest Rotiform
hoops we’ve ever seen, it’s built to snap
necks… in more ways than one. Rapido!
Rennen GT MR2
It’s a Toyota, that looks a bit like a Porker, and
easily one of the biggest head-turners of the
day. This MR2 built by the guys at Rennen GT
(and fitted with one of their full-on Rennen GT
V2 widebody), is something totally different
from the norm.
James Granger and Harley Thomas’ Civics
Who doesn’t love an EG Civic with some
mahoosive brass balls? Well, apart from and
any Mr Plods in the vicinity, obviously. These
two Kanjo UK specials are very different, but
they both have more than a whiff of the lairy
street racing spirit about them. Awesome!

026 www.banzaimagazine.com
 SHOW AND SHINE
Yet more variety was shown in the perfectly-buffed creations that turned up to compete for
the coveted Show and Shine trophy. Again, I can’t emphasise how diverse the display was,
it makes you wonder where some of these rare cars actually come from, and where they’ve
been hiding for the rest of the year.
This time around there was everything from Kevin’s flamin’ blue-chrome Scooby (which has
exhausts coming out of the rear quarters), and Jordan’s custom-kitted turbo Civic. To some
amazing old skool cars like a super-sweet Skyline pickup and, the eventual winner, a stunning
Datsun 240Z lovingly restored by a bloke called Paul Lawrence. Properly amazing stuff!

Jordan’s Civic
is definitely a
one-off

LOTS AND LOTS

(AND LOTS) OF MX-5S
“We’re hosting an MX-5 takeover this
year.” That’s what the organisers said,
and it looks like they weren’t kidding.
I don’t think anyone has ever seen so
many little Mazda drop-tops in one place
before. Even the ‘cars out’ parking bit at
the Mazda factory would have trouble
boasting these sort of numbers! But
what’s it all about? Well, for the first time
ever, a whole load of the UKs best MX-5
clubs got together to create one sort of
René Dost’s 370Z TT super MX-5 Club! Of course, they didn’t
There’s just three things you need to know even have to bash their rings together and
about this awesome build – it’s got two dance about like the Power Rangers to
whopping-great Borg Warner turbos. It’s the combine into the biggest mega-display
very first RHD 370Z on the planet to make ever, but the principle is the same. An
this conversion work… and there’s a full awesome idea, and an awesome stand.
feature over on pg58.
Constructicons
- transform!

Luke Hancox’s EP Civic

This EP3 not only has a number plate that
says turd, which made us giggle like school
girls, but it’s also sporting a rather large turbo
and a driver who’s not afraid to use it. It’s also
a re-shell job because of a massive smash…
we’ll save the full story for a feature though!
 SHOW REPORT

The club stands

filled all sorts of
new places The mighty GTROC
CLUBS lifted the ‘Best One
Make’ title…
Japfest Donington saw a bigger club
attendance than ever before this year. In
fact, the organisers even had to open up
parts of the venue that we’ve never even
seen before. Getting around them all was
a mammoth task too, but, as always, we
had a bloody good crack at it!
Again, there was an unbelievable
turnout and the judges had their work
cut out picking the winners. Top marks
to everyone who got involved, you guys
really are the heart and soul of Japfest,
not to mention the whole UK car scene!

CLUB WINNERS
Best Club sponsored by Reis Motorsport
Best Club: MX5 Takeover
Best One Make: GTROC
Best Regional Club: NE Subaru

TYRE CHALLENGE
The Tyre Challenge is proving popular
over all the shows this season. The
rules are simple, take off the wheel,
then pop it back on again - sounds
easy, right? Well, technically it’s pretty
simple, but the pressure can get to you
when your mates are watching. Even
professional tyre fitters spent most of
the day dropping their nuts all over the
shop… er, so to speak.
The best time was an amazing
21.50-seconds by Jake Thuygesen. He
was rewarded with the finest plastic
ANNIVERSARY DISPLAYS trophy that money can buy, and a whole
Both the Toyota Supra and the Mazda load of Japfest goodies. Top Job!
RX-7 celebrate the big Four-Zero in 2018
and that’s why the organisers put on
a top-notch display of each. Featuring
some of the very first, right up to the very
last, all in various states of tune, it was
like seeing living history right there in
the metal. With plenty of uber-dedicated
owners, these cars will definitely live
on for another 40-years.We’re certainly
looking forward to seeing which ones
turn up at Japfest Donington 2058.

GO NEXT YEAR
Woah, hang on a minute, you can’t
go to Japfest Donington next year
without going to Japfest Silverstone
first… well, you can, but you know
what I mean. Unfortunately, though,
you’ll have to wait until next May to get
your first Japfest fix. Final dates aren’t
announced yet, but if you keep an eye
on www.japfest.co.uk, we’ve heard that
they will be up there shortly.

028 www.banzaimagazine.com
 No stress.

Pair of Discs Assembled Replacement

Product
Make Model Year Size Complete Pair RRP Disc Ring
Type
with Bell (Inc. VAT) (single) (Inc. VAT)
Honda Civic Type R (FK2) 2015-2017 350x32 2-piece conversion SG2FC2028 £888.00 £280.80
Honda Civic Type R (FK8) 2017- 350x32 2-piece conversion SG2FC2028 £888.00 £280.80
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 10 2008-2016 350x32 OE replacement SG2F001 £768.00 £280.80
Nissan GT-R (R35) 2011- 390x34 OE replacement SG2F002 £1026.00 £378.00

Introducing EBC Racing’s brand-new range of 2-piece high performance brake discs. These UK made fully-floating discs utilise high carbon friction
rings coupled to lightweight aluminium bells via a plurality of stainless-steel drive bobbins. These bobbins slide freely in slots machined in the
friction ring, allowing the outer cast iron disc to expand and contract freely by up to 3.0mm in response to heat generated through braking. By
allowing the outer friction ring to expand and contract freely the stress in the brake disc is reduced considerably, preventing cracking and warping
even after prolonged periods of track driving.

Discs are priced per fully assembled pair and available via two purchase routes; as a direct replacement for performance vehicles where a 2-piece
disc is fitted as OE, or as a 2-piece floating disc conversion for vehicles where a 1-piece disc is fitted as standard (2-piece floating conversions
require no modifications to the vehicle and are totally interchangeable with the original brake disc).

Discs are handed and feature directional curved vanes for maximum cooling efficiency. All disc rings are cast out of a ‘G3500’ disc alloy containing
high carbon and copper content and is the highest grade of casting alloy available.

Other applications also available: Focus RS mk3, Insignia VXR, Astra VXR (J).
e-mail kits@ebcbrakes.com for more info.

Available now from:

D
IR
EC
T

www.ebcbrakesdirect.com Unparalleled Braking Performance

 PRODUCTS TOP GEAR

DBA BRAKES T3 5000 SERIES DISCS, FROM £179

With one of the most extreme import tuning scenes in the world, it looks like the boys
Downunder now have some of the craziest brakes too! In fact, although we seriously
thought we’d seen it all before when it comes to badass stoppers, even for us, this is a first.
Just check out these patented ‘Kangaroo Paw’ discs from Disc Brakes Australia.
Yes, it’s obviously what’s on the inside that counts here, and although there may be
more than a little national pride shining through, the science is sound. Instead of more
conventional straight vanes, DBA use their Kangaroo Paw Ventilation System for increased
cooling and a huge reduction in the possibility of warpage, wheel-bearing fatigue, runout
and brake fade under hard use. Rather cleverly they’ve incorporated 144 evenly-distributed,
diamond and teardrop-shaped pillars into the discs to offer up to 60% more surface area for
better heat dissipation and a massive increase in overall strength.
If you’re all about the hardcore, then these are definitely the ones for you. Give their UK
dealer, Jap Performance Parts, a ring for just about every application you can imagine. Fair
Dinkum mate!
www.japperformanceparts.co.uk

SILVERLINE CLIP
REMOVAL KIT, £41
The older ones may be simple enough, but
there’s no denying that plenty of modern
Japanese cars can be a right bugger to work
on! Well, that’s where this set of heavy-duty,
clip-removal tools can come in mighty handy.
Designed to tackle the hose clips and other
fasteners on just about every vehicle on the
road, if you can’t get ‘em off with one of these WHITE LABEL PRO R WHEELS, FROM £375
tools, you’re definitely doing something wrong! Considering they come in at a price that we had to go back and check (twice), we
We like the price, and we like the fact that reckon these 15-inchers have to be the bargain of the century!
many have a ratchet locking mechanism to Available in staggered widths and for 4x100 and 4x114 PCDs, White Label may
make life easier by helping to keep your hands be new to the UK, but such a classic design is always a welcome addition the
free. There’s nothing not to like about this one, relatively small number of 15s that are launched nowadays. Remember kids, big
it’ll make a top addition to any toolbox. wheels are only cool if you can actually get them on!
www.silverlinetools.com www.nuts4wheels.com

030 www.banzaimagazine.com
PWP CRATE ENGINE KITS, FROM £5820
If you’re like us and can’t seem to turn off the all-American car-building shows on Discovery
and the like, you’ll no doubt be familiar with the concept of chucking in a brand-new crate
engine. Now, admittedly, it’s not what you’d call common here in the UK, but we reckon
it bloody well should be, especially with the selection of lumps on offer from the fellas at
Parts World Performance. After all, if you’re looking for insane ‘all-motor’ power right out
of the box, not to mention something a little different to the usual Japanese suspects, it’s
hard to beat a spot of tried and tested, Yankee 8-cylinder muscle.
These guys can sort you out with everything from a 6.2-litre LS3 with 430-horses to, well,
let’s just say something even more special with up to 750hp! In fact, they’ve just broken
the Megawatt (1341 hp) barrier with one of their engines too, an LSX motor putting out a
whopping 1400-big ones on the dyno. Get that in a Civic and you can have the Banzai cover!
Blown up your Wankel? That SR20 not cutting it anymore? If you’ve got deep pockets, these
guys could hold the answer.
www.partsworldperformance.com

MISHIMOTO 350Z/370Z
CATCH CANS, £TBA
A catch can is one of the all-time great
engine mods. It’s not just because they
clean up your PCV system, protecting
essential components from blow-by, and help
to maintain octane levels. But they show the world
you know what you’re on about too! A catch can is a
badge of mechanical prowess. It’s as simple as that.
Perhaps the best thing about these two new
offerings though, is that they’re also designed for
direct-fitment, so there’s no messing about trying to plumb
them in. 350Z and 370Z owners should have instillation licked in minutes.
As you’d expect from Mishimoto too, these fully-serviceable, billet
aluminium jobs are also impeccably engineered. They use a 50-micron
bronze filter to separate the air and oil, and have a large enough capacity
that you won’t find yourself having to empty them every 36-seconds. What
we have here then, are the finest catch cans on the market.
www.mishimoto.co.uk

STANCEPARTS AIR CUP LIFT SYSTEM, FROM £600

The ‘air vs coilovers’ debate goes on and on and on, and we’re guessing it will until the end
of time because there’s no correct answer - it’s simply down to your application and your own
personal taste. This rather clever new product from Stanceparts though, is designed to combine
the best attributes of both, so it could provide an answer for many.
The idea is that you use your coilovers for road and track driving, and when you need a bit of
clearance for speed bumps and the like, the special ‘air cups’ can provide an extra 50mm, all at
the touch of a button. In that way, it’s kind of like a ‘reverse’ air ride system because you’re not
driving with the car jacked up all of the time, leaving your coilovers for attacking the twisty bits.
What’s more, Stanceparts say that their air cups fit 90% of coilovers on the market, so many
of you will already be halfway there. Full kits (which include the air tank, compressor and all the
fittings), start at £600, which makes them substantially cheaper than most air ride setups too.
www.stanceparts.com

September 2018 031

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 INFINITI G35

THE GIFT
THAT KEEPS
ON GIVING
Bought as a wedding present to each other over 15
years ago, Randy Riggs and his wife’s Infiniti G35 has
gradually evolved to become one of the very finest
show cars of its kind…
Words: Sam Preston Photos: Viktor Benyi

034 www.banzaimagazine.com
T
reating yourself to a memento
that reminds you of your wedding
day isn’t exactly an uncommon
occurrence. Whether it’s a holiday
to Jamaica or that pine kitchen
table you’ve been lusting after
for months, it’s a great way to help you to
remember your special day for years to come.
But just how long does the usual gift last
before it loses its significance, exactly?
Probably not as long as Randy’s here – this
Infiniti G35 coupé that’s continuing to give
the happy couple a fizzing feeling in their
stomachs well over a decade down the
line. And it’s all thanks to a raft of constant
upgrades that allow it to remain fresh-to-
death to this very day.
“We bought it brand new when we got
married in 2003,” cable technician Randy
smiles. “We surprised our friends and family
by turning up in it at the reception on the day
itself!” Tapping into ownership of this V6-
powered posh Nissan early on was no stroke
of luck for 49-year-old Randy, either; as this
certainly wasn’t the first time he’d been ahead
of the curve when it came to his car choice.
“I’ve been modifying motors for almost 30
years now,” he reveals. “My first car was an
’84 Nissan 720 pick-up that I started tweaking
well before the ‘mini trucking’ scene exploded
here in Cali. I also picked up a Honda Accord
in ’88 just before the Japanese tuner craze
blew up.” With a couple of magazine covers
under his belt, Randy was confident the G35
would be the next big thing for the States
in the early ‘00s, and was eager to get
something of a head-start…
Remaining stock and effortlessly performing
his wife’s daily duties for a couple of years
to start with, the then-Diamond Graphite-
coloured cruiser was in for a shock, as Randy
had been busy saving and piling up parts in
his garage in anticipation of transforming the
car in one fell swoop.
“We turned it into a show car in the space
of about four months,” he says, the car soon
boasting the likes of a custom Kenstyle
wide-body kit and even a bright orange
Lamborghini paint job for the first phase of
its show car life. The die-hard US car fans
amongst you may well remember the Infiniti in
this eye-catching guise, as it attended more
than its fair share of shows around the mid-
‘00s period, blowing its peers out of the water
at every single one.
With the engine also receiving a Vortech
supercharger kit around this time, it’s no huge
surprise that roughly eight more years down
the line in 2014, the G35 was screaming out
for a bit of attention once again. “With 80,000
supercharged miles under its belt, the engine
was starting to go bad,” Randy explains.
Addressing the issues was no bother,
though. After all, this was more than just a car
for Randy and his wife, so he was willing to
go much further than most to keep it at the
leading edge of the modified car scene. It’s for
this reason the 3.5-litre motor was whipped
out and given the full works in the form of a
complete re-build to allow that supercharger
September 2018 035
 INFINITI G35
The V-3 supercharger taking
pride of place and offering up
430bhp to the rear wheels
to perform to the best of its abilities once
more. Oversized forged pistons, new con rods
and a polished crank therefore found their
way into the block, while the head was treated
to ARP studs and a ported Cosworth inlet
manifold. The fuelling, exhaust and cooling
systems were also treated to an equally
impressive level of attention at the same time.
With the V-3 supercharger kit taking pride
of place once more and offering up around
430bhp to the rear wheels now the boost
could be safely cranked up a little higher,
Randy also took this opportunity to make the
bay itself even tidier thanks to more polished
036 www.banzaimagazine.com
components and an even more stringent
wire tuck than had been seen previously. It
only takes one glance now to see this is one
engine bay that’s had more than its fair share
of man hours!
“While I was at it, I thought I’d get some
bodywork and paint touch-ups done… which
turned into the idea of getting a complete
re-spray… which turned into the idea of
changing the colour completely!” Randy
continues – an escalating feeling that many
modified car fanatics will no doubt be all
too familiar with. It’s why the impressive
wide-body, complete with all of its custom
carbon fibre accents, was soon sprayed up
in the fresh Lambo ‘Blu Cepheus Pearl’ hue,
to signify the second evolution of this ever-
evolving project.
He’d come this far, so Randy thought
this would be a prime time to switch up his
choice of rims while he was at it, too. Initially
struggling to find a brand that would be able
to whip up a bespoke design that matched
his needs, he was eventually tipped off about
locally-based Triumph Forged, who worked
alongside Randy to concoct these 20-inch
dual five-spoke staggered stunners. We
think you’ll agree that they work wonders in
 MORE
THAN JUST
DROPPED

Beside the Air Lift Performance

air suspension with trick 3P digital
management offering up all the lows
you could ask for, there are a raft of
other goodies featuring on this Infiniti’s
chassis that help it kick up a killer
stance as well as handling almost
double the factory power from that
boosted motor up front in the process.
Top-notch Cusco sway bars feature
all-round, as well as SPL camber and
traction arms to allow the perfect
geo to be dialled in at any ride height.
There’s also an Energy Suspension
bushing kit that ensures there’s no
weak point on this 15-year-old motor’s
underside, with everything chrome
plated for good measure. Trust us,
this thing looks just as impressive
underneath as it does on top – the sign
of a true show car!
 INFINITI G35
freshening up the car’s curves, especially
when the thing’s dumped on its Air Lift
Performance suspension system.
The fact that the leather-and-suede
transformation that Randy’s undertaken
inside was performed in the early days of
the build but still looks a million dollars
tells you everything you need to know
about the proud owner’s impeccable
dedication. Featuring comfy Recaro
recliners with matching rear seats and
steering wheel, as well as the beautifully
presented audio install in the boot area,
some careful maintenance has helped
038 www.banzaimagazine.com
ensured the interior is one part of the car
that never fails to drop jaws.
Following several award-winning
SEMA show visits in the past few years,
Randy’s upcoming plans with his beloved
G35 are pretty well mapped-out. “I’d like
to do one more SEMA show in the car
before taking it off the road for a while,”
he explains, feeling it deserves a much-
needed rest period before he tackles the
next stage of the life-long project. But
with so many memories attached, you
can rest assured that he’s not getting rid
of this beauty in a hurry.
TECHSPEC
ENGINE: 3.5-litre VQ35DE DOHC 24v V6 engine,
fully built block (comprising JE 5mm oversized forged
pistons, Carrillo con rods, polished and balanced
crankshaft and ARP head studs, main studs and
header bolts), fully polished Vortech V-3 supercharger
kit, polished Treadstone TR8L intercooler, custom
cold air intake with K&N filter, ported and polished
Cosworth inlet manifold with billet end caps, ported
and polished ceramic-coated lower collector, R-Ryde
custom one-piece charge pipe, billet throttle body
spacer, DC Sports exhaust manifolds with heat wrap,
GReddy Evo II fully polished exhaust system with HKS
titanium tips, AEM 320lph in-tank fuel pump, Cosworth
fuel rails with custom anodised Earl’s braided lines and
fittings, DeatschWerks 600cc fuel injectors, Radium
fuel pressure damper, Koyo 32mm aluminium radiator
with cooling fans and aluminium shroud, GReddy
thermostatic oil cooler sandwich plate, Circuit Sports oil
catch can, NRG power steering and coolant overflow
tanks, NGK iridium colder spark plugs, Fluidamper
balanced crank pulley, UR billet alternator pulley,
custom billet idler pulleys, Stillen high-capacity oil
pan with NRG magnetic drain plug, modified Stillen
master cylinder brace, custom grounding kit, Earl’s
steel braided hoses and AN fittings, Hose Techniques
couplers and T-bolt clamps, Optima yellow-top battery,
polished and burnt titanium coil pack covers, NISMO
oil cap, 200+ bolts replaced with stainless steel Allen
bolts, various polished/chrome-plated covers, Uprev
Osiris engine management, custom full wire tuck with
holes/brackets shaved, five-speed automatic gearbox
with paddles, NISMO finned differential cover, Driveshaft
Shop one-piece aluminium driveshafts
CHASSIS: 10.5x20-inch (front) and 12x20-inch
(rear) Triumph Performance CY.X forged alloy wheels,
275/30/20 (front) and 305/25/20 (rear) Toyo Proxes T1
Sport tyres, Orange Electronics digital tyre pressure
monitoring system, ARP extended wheel studs, RK
titanium lug nuts, Air Lift Performance air suspension
system (with 3P management system, 2.5-gallon air
tank and VIAIR 444c compressor), Cusco sway bars
(front and rear), SPL Pro camber arms, traction arms,
sway bar end links, tie rod ends, and front compression
rod bushings, SPC toe adjustment bolts, Energy
Suspension Master Kit suspension bushings, NRG
upper front strut bar, fully polished rear subframe,
chrome plated/powdercoated suspension components,
Stoptech ST-40 calipers with 355mm discs (front),
Stoptech ST-45 calipers with 355mm discs (rear),
Stoptech brake pads, Motul RBF 600 brake fluid
EXTERIOR: BASF Blu Cepheus Pearl R-M paint,
modified 4-piece Kenstyle body kit, custom wide-body
conversion with metal over-fenders, custom moulded-in
rear spoiler and bumper, shaved door handles with
custom door popper, shaved side repeaters, Top Secret
carbon fibre bonnet with NRG dampers, custom petrol
filler door, custom carbon fibre accents, custom carbon
fibre front, side and rear splitters, moulded-in carbon
fibre mirror covers, JDM-spec facelift tail lights sprayed
in body colour, custom facelift headlights with LED
angel eyes and TSX projector lenses
INTERIOR: Recaro Sport Topline reclining bucket
seats finished in custom leather and suede, powder-
coated seat brackets with chrome bolts, Takata
harnesses, NRG harness bar, re-trimmed rear seats
with suede inserts, fully wrapped two-tone Nova
suede trim (including dashboard, door cards, rear
panels, headlining and pillars), upgraded carpet, NRG
floor mats, custom-mounted AEM gauges (boost, oil
pressure, oil temperature, voltage and UEGO), custom
carbon fibre wrapped interior trim, Razo Competition
pedals, Nissan GT-R paddle shifters, custom-wrapped
facelift steering wheel, M45 gear knob with modified
FX35 gaiter, LED accent lighting, Eclipse AVN 6610
with steering wheel controls, Audison Bit One digital
processor, Audison LRx 1.1k 420-watt mono amplifier,
Audison LRx 6.9 six-channel 430-watt amplifier,
Hertz HSK 163 three-way separates, twin Hertz HX
250 10-inch sub woofers, Hertz DSK 130 5.25-inch
two-way separates custom mounted on boot lid, LG
tablet, Audison power cables and battery terminals,
Streetwires 1MFD capacitor, Dynamat, neon lights and
LEDs
 0% Interest

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TECH TALK THE KNOWLEDGE

TURBO BASICS
This month we get to grips with the
mythical metal snail… How they Work
The subject of turbo tuning isn’t of the pistons to draw in air,

T
exactly an uncomplicated one, a turbocharger can physically
he vast majority of new cars have turbos, that’s a 21st but it’s worth remembering that force in massive amounts,
Century fact. But it’s not a new phenomenon in any sense of an actual turbo is a relatively meaning there is almost no limit
the word, the humble turbocharger has been around for well simple device - one of the most on power… aside from what the
over a century and, although they didn’t become popular basic parts of any setup it’s engine internals can handle of
for tuning until the ‘80s, nowadays they’re perhaps the most attached to. That’s no doubt course. In that respect turbo-
common power tuning device out there. That goes double a good thing too, the internals tuning is all about one thing -
when it comes to OEM cars, most manufacturers much prefer small need to withstand being spun potential airflow.
turbocharged engines over big N/A lumps because of such mundane at over 150,000rpm for tens of A turbo has two main parts
environmental considerations like economy and emissions. Downsizing thousands of miles, at ludicrous and these are the compressor
and turbocharging the engines on performance motors has become temperatures, all without tearing and the turbine. As the exhaust
common over the past few years, in fact, they’re all at it! themselves apart. gas leaves the engine, it travels
Still, that’s not what’s on our mind so much here. In the world of A turbo is simply an exhaust through the exhaust manifold
Japanese car tuning, the turbo will forever be associated with the most gas-driven air compressor and and enters the turbine housing.
extreme cars. That’s not to say that Japan had the first turbocharged its job is to assist in the most The heat, pressure and flow of
production cars on the streets, Porsche and BMW both had them in the basic principle of any engine the exhaust gas then spins the
‘70s and Chevrolet launched the turbocharged Corvair Spyder a decade tuning – cramming more air turbine wheel which is linked by
earlier. But the fact of the matter is, when you think turbo tuning, you into the cylinders so more fuel a solid shaft to the compressor
think Japan… probably because of classic performance cars like the can be burned. This creates wheel. As the compressor
R32 Skyline, MkIV Supra and rally icons like the Impreza and Evo. Japan a bigger bang and ultimately wheel spins, it sucks in and
has always been the most prolific when it comes to production motors more power. Where an N/A pressurizes fresh air, and then it
and turbochargers, and the craziest when it comes to tuning them. engine relies on the suction blows it into the engine.
Anyway, whether yours is a motor that’s blown as standard or, like
most of the feature cars in this issue, a car that’s been converted to run a
turbo, the principle is the same. Forced induction is simply the best way
of increasing power output for any given engine capacity. Of course, we
have superchargers too, but turbos are generally much cheaper and will
produce more power for any given boost pressure.
The short of it then, is that having a turbo is hard to beat, simply
because they offer the most power for the least cash. Here’s the basics...

September 2018 041

TECH TALK THE KNOWLEDGE
TURBO ANATOMY CENTRE BEARING
HOUSING
This centre section
The Compressor joins the two housings
The compressor resembles a giant snail shell COMPRESSOR OUTLET together and covers the
and that’s where the nickname comes from. turbo shaft. At the top TURBINE
In the centre of the housing you have the As the name suggests, the and bottom of the CBH OUTLET
compressor inlet, which draws in air via the air compressed (and very hot) (sometimes called the The exhaust gas
filter. On the outer edge you have the outlet, air exits here on its way to core), you’ll find holes spins the turbine
which is where the air exits the turbo on its your motor – the next stop is allowing the engine oil wheel and leaves
way to the engine. usually the intercooler. to flow in and out, this the turbo here
Admittedly it’s not an exact science, but the lubricates the shaft continuing out
overall size of the compressor housing gives and bearings. of the exhaust
you a rough guide to the potential of a turbo. system.
If it’s absolutely huge, it’s safe to assume it
can serve up serious amounts of boost. The
compressor wheel size and inducer diameter
(the size of the section behind the compressor
housing inlet), are also good indications of the
potential of the turbo. The bigger the diameter,
the higher the airflow, and the higher the
airflow, the higher the power potential.

COMPRESSOR INLET
This is where it all starts. Air
gets sucked into the turbo
from your air filter.

COMPRESSOR HOUSING
Once air gets sucked through the inlet it’s
pressurised in the compressor housing. The

TURBINE INLET
Exhaust gases exit your engine, go through the
exhaust manifold and into the exhaust side of your
turbo through the turbine inlet.

Closer look: Centre

Bearing Housing
Here’s what’s going on right
in the middle of the turbo. The
centre bearing housing is the part
that - wait for it - contains the
bearings. It’s also the part that oils
the bearings to keep everything
spinning freely. On a modern ball-
bearing turbo this is where you’ll
find the ball-bearing cartridge and,
on more conventional turbos, it’ll
be where you’ll find the journal and
thrust bearings.
There are two main styles of
CBH, one that is oil-cooled-only,
and one that is also water-cooled.
Old skool, oil-cooled-only turbos
rely on the engine to keep the oil
temperature under control, whereas
water-cooled turbos are plumbed
into the engine cooling circuit.

042 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Flanges Twin Scroll Turbos
The flange is the part of the turbo On the left we have a slightly different
that bolts onto your manifold, and turbine inlet. Most turbos will have a single
that’s why its shape is so important. entry hole, but a ‘twin scroll’ turbo will have
Nowadays the majority of modern two. On some engines the exhaust pulses
cars have different shaped flanges, can interfere with each other as they try
and that’s why standard turbos tend to force themselves along the same path.
to come in all sorts of designs. Most A twin scroll turbo (used in conjunction
aftermarket turbos though, have one of with a twin scroll manifold) divides the
four different flange sizes ranging from entry path to the turbo to help combat
T2 (for around 2-400bhp) to whacking- reversion – where so much turbulence is
great T6 items that’ll happily help caused that the gases try to turn back into
produce 1000bhp plus. Some standard the cylinders. These provide a smoother,
manifolds will be able to accept these uninterrupted path.
flanges, but very often upgrading to
a bigger turbo will mean getting an Hybrid Turbos
aftermarket manifold with the correct Basically, a hybrid is a turbo made from
flange for the turbine inlet. various parts of other turbos. This can
If it’s a turbo conversion you’re looking be a turbo that’s been fitted with larger
at, you’ll need an aftermarket manifold internals to flow more air, while remaining
anyway – or there will simply be the standard size for easy fitment. Or an
nowhere to bolt on your shiny new aftermarket turbo that has had its inlet/
metal snail! outlet adapted to enable direct fitment.

The Turbine
Just like the compressor, the turbine housing resembles a snail shell,
though this is the part that has to survive ultra-high exhaust gas
temperatures. For this reason, generally, it’ll be manufactured from cast
iron, or sometimes stainless steel. TURBINE HOUSING
The flow through the turbine is the opposite direction to the Usually made from cast iron, this
compressor, and the size of the housing is directly related to how quickly sealed unit houses the turbine BEARINGS
the turbo will spool up. It’s something of a trade-off because larger wheel and has to withstand The shaft that
turbine housings will offer more potential power, but at the expense of temperatures of above 1000°C. connects the turbine
spooling time. The good news is it’s attached to the compressor, so and compressor
manufacturers usually make sure they’re perfectly matched. wheels floats on
bearings. There are
two common types;
regular floating
journal bearings
and ball bearings.
With the floating
bearing set-up, the
core literally floats
on a thin layer of
pressurised oil. With
ball bearing turbos,
the shaft sits and rolls
on tiny ball bearings.

COMPRESSOR WHEEL TURBINE WHEEL

This forces the pressurised The hot exhaust gases exit the motor and get
air into the engine and is routed through the turbine housing at high
connected via a shaft to the speed. These gases spin the turbine wheel
turbine wheel. It’ll happily which, in turn, spins the compressor wheel.
rotate at over 150,000rpm!

September 2018 043

TECH TALK THE KNOWLEDGE

B
 oost Pressure
For any combination of engine and turbocharger, it’s safe to say that the higher
the boost level, the higher the power and torque output will be. There are two
mistakes people tend to make with regards to boost levels though; either
concentrating too much on the pressure, or not paying enough attention to it
at all. The size of the turbo is as important as the pressure it’s putting out. Put
simply any large turbo will create more power than a small turbo at the same
pressure. A huge turbo running very low pressure won’t put out anywhere near
its potential, or claimed, output either. According to experts very few turbos
reach their maximum flow until at least 30psi/2bar boost – some don’t until well
over 50psi/3.5bar!

External Wastegates
On some large, high-boost, turbos
there isn’t an internal wastegate,
so an external item is needed to
limit the pressure. This will be
Wastegate Actuators mounted away from the turbo,
usually on the exhaust manifold.
The amount of boost the engine can receive is ultimately controlled Again, these are basically a
by the wastage actuator. Its job is to allow some of the gases to valve that opens at a preset level
bypass the turbo to limit the boost pressure. Without a wastegate, to let gases bypass the turbine
the pressure will have no limiting factor – which won’t exactly be wheel. They will either vent gases
good for your engine. The wastegate built into the vast majority to the exhaust system, or directly
of standard turbos basically acts as a valve, and this is controlled to the atmosphere via an unsilenced
by the actuator. That’s not to say some extra boost isn’t useful ‘screamer’ pipe.
though, and an uprated or adjustable actuator is a useful tool for To be fair wastegates (both internal
tuning your turbo. In fact, most of the time it’s and external) and actuators are so
worth replacing or uprating your actuator as important for tuning, they deserve
a matter of course. Over time, standard their own Tech Talk. We’ll get stuck
items can deteriorate and start into boost control in the next issue.
opening before their specified
boost level is achieved. This
causes a power drop off at
higher RPMs.

Turbo Lag
The common misconception is that turbo lag is simply
the rpm before the turbo kicks in. A turbo that boosts
at 1500rpm is not as ‘laggy’ as a turbo that kicks in at
3000rpm, right? Well, technically speaking that’s not the
case, the latter turbo simply has a higher boost threshold,
what’s known as the usable ‘powerband’.
Lag is actually the delay between the hitting the throttle
(within the boost threshold) and the turbo waking up, spooling,
and hitting full boost.
Compared to N/A or supercharged engines there is a
noticeable difference in throttle response and that can affect
performance when a car is driven on the limit. That’s why many race
cars have anti-lag systems, or just prefer N/A engines. There will
always be some sort of lag on any car, even in standard guise, but
the easiest way to avoid it when turbo tuning is simple - just make
sure your blower isn’t too big for the power you’re trying to achieve.

044 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Blow-Off Valves
Many think BOVs are there to reduce turbo lag
between gear changes, but that’s not the case.
Their main use is to improve turbo reliability
by helping to prevent compressor surge. The
idea is that they venting the pressure to the
atmosphere when you lift off the throttle, hence
the famous ‘pschhhht’ sound. Nowadays plenty
of factory setups use similar ‘recirculating
valves’ which do the same job, the only
difference is that they vent the boost back into
the system to keep the noise down.

Heat Management
If there’s one disadvantage of having
a turbo it’s the heat it produces. The
biggest problem is the fact that the
air leaving the compressor can be
bloody hot, over 120DegC in fact. If
you put that straight into your engine,
that’s not going to be good for power
or reliability. That’s where and air-air
intercooler or air-water chargecooler comes
in, these are designed to keep the temperature
down to a sensible level.
There’s also the issue of radiated heat from
the turbo and exhaust system, it’s common for
these to glow red hot, creating loads of heat which can be transfered to other
components. For this reason effective heat shielding is a must.
Lastly, making sure your cooling system can cope is as important as upping
the horses. As your engine is tuned for more power it stands to reason that
it’s working harder, getting hotter and putting more strain on the components
desperately trying to keep the temperature down. Put simply, your cooling
system has to keep the coolant flowing around the engine and not all over
the floor!
Silicone hoses not only look great (and are available for just about every
motor going), but they’re specifically designed to resist cracking and bursting
under high pressures and temperatures. The same goes for those shiny header
tanks which replace the factory plastic units.

Exhaust Systems
Although it’s clearly not possible, the best
exhaust, in performance terms at least, is no
exhaust at all. Unlike on N/A engines you don’t
need the scavenging effect or the back pressure
so, generally speaking, the bigger the system,
particularly the downpipe, the better.
The manifold also differs from an N/A setup.
Without a turbo, it’s a power-giving essential, but
with a turbo it can be far more basic. That’s not to
say it won’t affect power at all, a well-designed
manifold will help release the potential of your turbo.
It can also help with spool-up times. Generally a
short, stubby manifold will give faster
spooling while a long, free-flowing
item will help increase power.
What you choose will
always be a trade-off.

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September 2018 045

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 TECH TALK TUNING
QUICK-FIRE TUNING:
The Classic Sub
ENGINE
We don’t have to tell you that the 2-litre Boxer unit is a little on the
legendary side for tuning, so much so that there can’t be many
standard ones left by now! It’s mostly because these engines
respond so well to bolt-on tuning mods like exhausts, induction
kits and front mount intercoolers, although it’s worth bearing in
mind that they need to be suitably mapped to make the most of
any additions. Very often you can actually loose power until you
get everything dialled-in nicely, so it’s always worth investing in a
good ECU like a Link G4+ and having it tweaked to perfection by
a proper Subaru specialist. These 4 mods alone can see around
320bhp on an STi, and around 300 on a WRX.
The ‘further’ tuning world is your lobster too, there’s everything
from turbo upgrades and bigger injectors, to all the parts you
can ever desire for a full-on build - top gear like forged internals,
stroker kits and closed-deck blocks. That said, we’d always start
with basic stuff like making sure you look after it properly. Pay
particular attention to your oil, most common engine failures are
Words: Midge
caused by starvation, so don’t just make sure it’s the good stuff
you’re putting in (the high performance range from Royal Purple
comes highly recommended for the Classic Scoob), but think
about fitting a high-flow oil pump too.
www.asptrading.co.uk
048 www.banzaimagazine.com
DRIVETRAIN
The standard gearbox on all the classic Subarus,
including the STi models, are always cause for debate.
Some say they’re excellent and solid enough for plenty
of upgrades, others say they’re absolute garbage and
liable to break at any given moment – we think “made
from 3-day-old cheese and pickle sandwiches” was our
favourite quote from a well-known Subaru forum. Still,
what we do know is that they’re a bugger to replace, not
getting hold of one (Quaife can do a you a whole load of
uprated kit and there’s about a billion second-hand ‘boxes
out there), we’re talking about actually doing the job… it’s
certainly not like whipping out a clutch on a Civic.
Speaking of clutches too, it’s dead easy to eat yours
if you’re running a lot more than stock power and have a
weakness for mashing the throttle. It’s little wonder that an
uprated clutch is one of the most popular upgrades on all
Subaru Imprezas, let alone the older ones.
www.xtremeclutch.co.uk
aru Impreza This month it’s,
quite literally, a
Classic…

INTERIOR
There’s two main interior mods that have stood the test of time here - decent seats and lots and
lots of engine gauges. To be fair there’s not much more you need. STi seats are always popular
of course, and the guys at Jap Performance Parts should be able to sort you out a second-hand
set. There’s also no shortage of aftermarket perches to choose from, everything from motorsport
buckets to uber-luxury recliners.
Cars built before 1997 have a different dash, so some like to upgrade theirs to one from a later
model and, if you won’t be using the rear seats (or doors) anyway, a role cage is a good way of
getting the ultimate in chassis stiffness, not to mention some rather racy looks.
www.japperformanceparts.co.uk

CHASSIS
All the usual Impreza rules apply here. Before you do anything check there’s
no knocking from the front end, ARB bushes are particularly susceptible to
degrading and the other bushes could be hard-used and need replacing
by now. Obviously polyurethane items are the way to go if you’re trying to
tighten up the handling, we’d speak to SuperPro about their range.
As for suspension, there’s loads out there for every application. Ask
yourself what you want from your Impreza. Will it be going on track or do you
need a comfortable daily driver? Pedders Suspension make a whole range,
from uprated shock and spring kits to full-on ‘XA’ coilovers. These guys
come highly recommended from those in the know.
www.pedders.co.uk

WHEELS AND BRAKES

EXTERIOR
It’s called a ‘Classic’ for a reason and the
days of mentalist fibreglass body kits and
lurid graphics are all but gone. Nowadays
most Classic owners are motoring
connoisseurs rather than out-and-out
turbo nutters don’tcha know? Especially
the ones luckily enough to own a 2-door!
Still, unless you’re going for a hardcore
motorsport-style, which is a very cool
and a vastly different thing to any sort of
daily-driver, most people opt to add a few
carbon fibre details and possibly follow
the OEM+ route of upgrading earlier cars
with the crystal headlights and grilles from
a post-facelift model. That said, there’s
still lots out there for all these cars, but
for once though, we’d say keep it subtle
with a few simple tweaks like a front lip, a
spoiler-swap and a few choice trinkets.
www.epracing.com
17 or, at a push, 18-inch wheels are
generally accepted to be the best on
the Classic Scooby, we wouldn’t go any
bigger than that. Don’t forget too that the
AWD system likes to keep the same rolling
radius on each axle, so running staggered
widths is an easy way of messing up your
underpinnings. The good news is that
there’s not many wheels that don’t suit
the Classics, especially those firmly in the
motorsport-style camp. So you won’t have
trouble finding the right set.
For the most part the stock brakes are
decent, if a little underwhelming. At the
very least we’d go for some upgraded
discs and pads from EBC. But, if you’re
looking for the ultimate in stopping power, Other Top Contacts
there’s plenty of BBKs out there that will • Link ECU
fit under a set of wide 17s. Again, there’s www.linkecu.com
probably too many out there to count. • SuperPro
www.ebcbrakes.com www.superpro.com.eu
• Japspeed
www.japspeed.co.uk
• Rota UK
www.rarerims.co.uk
• Scooby Clinic
www.scobyclinic.com

September 2018 049

 Pedders Ad - Impreza Classic Banzai Mag - July 2018 - PRINT.pdf 1 23/07/2018 12:33

SUBARU IMPREZA
C
Full range of suspension kits - for your Classic Impreza!
M

CM

MY

CY

CMY
Pedders SportsRyder
K
Lowering Spring Kit:
Pedders Springs deliver improved vehicle
performance, improved looks whilst
maintaining ride quality characteristics.
Developed and manufactured in Australia
from the highest quality materials
( £143.44 inc VAT & UK delivery )
FULL range of individual suspension components available!
www.pedders.co.uk
AS PERF_hh 01/12/2015 11:26 Page 1
Pedders SportsRyder
Ezifit Kit:
A fully assembled, “Ezifit” suspension kit,
featuring lowered springs and uprated
shocks, whilst retaining a good level of ride
comfort and excellent compliance for great
street handling. Ideal for the replacement
of worn out original suspension.
( £777.72 inc VAT & UK delivery )
01296 711044
Pedders SportsRyder
eXtreme XA Coilover Kit:
The Pedders Sports Ryder eXtreme XA
adjustable coil over features a 30 position
adjustable bump and rebound damping
setting, plus height adjustment. Ideal for
the more serious performance enthusiast
and occasional track day use.
( £921.43 inc VAT & UK delivery )
www.pedders.co.uk

Motor sport specialists

Custom engineering

Wholesale, Trade & Retail Enquiries Welcome

Sole distributor/manufacturer of Harvey Smith & Carl Davey Designs products

E info@asperformance.com T 0191 410 3770 www.asperformance.com

 In association with Rare Rims
TECH TALK WHEEL FITMENT www.rarerims.co.uk

T H E S WA P S H O P

PCD GUIDE
It’s the age old question - will those EG Civic wheels fit my
Mazda MX-5? Whether it’s new aftermarket hoops, that
elusive eBay bargain, or a simple OEM swap you’re looking
for, here’s the essential info for (most of) our core cars…

PCD CENTRE BORE PCD CENTRE BORE

HONDA 300ZX Z31/Z32 (1989-1992) 5x114.3 66.1
Accord (2003-) 5x114.3 64.1 350Z (2002-2009) 5x114.3 66.1
CRX (1984-2000) 4x100 56.1 370Z (2009-) 5x114.3 66.1
Civic (1983-2000) 4x100 56.1 GT-R (2008-) 5x114.3 66.1
Civic (2006-) 5x114.3 64.1 Juke (2010-) 5x114.3 66.1
Civic Type R (2001-2012) 5x114.3 64.1 Micra (1993-2003) 4x100 59.1
Civic Type R (2012-) 5x120 64.1 Micra (2010-) 4x100 60.1
Integra Type R (JDM)/Civic MB6 4x114.3 64.1 Skyline R32 (GTS) 4x114.3 66.1
Integra Type R (1998) 5x114.3 64.1 Skyline R32, R33, R34 (1989-2002) 5x114.3 66.1
S2000 5x114.3 70.3/64.1 Sunny (1991-1995) 4x100 59.1
INFINITI SUBARU
G35 (2003-2007) 5x114.3 66.1 Impreza 5x100 56.1
LEXUS Impreza STI, WRX (1993-04) 5x100 56.1
GS 300/430 5x114.3 60.1 Impreza STI (2005-) 5x114.3 56.1
IS 200 5x114.3 60.1 BRZ 5x100 56.1
LS 400/430 5x114.3 60.1 SUZUKI
LS460/600 5x120 60.1 Swift (2005-) 4x100 54.1
MAZDA Swift Sport 5x114.3 60.1
RX-7 (FD) 5x114.3 67.1 Wagon R 4x100 54.1
RX-8 5x114.3 67.1 TOYOTA
MX-5 (1990-2005) 4x100 54.1 Celica (1989-) 5x100 56.1
MX-5 (2005-) 5x114.3 67.1 Corolla (1987-2007) 4x100 54.1
MITSUBISHI Corolla (2007-) 5x114.3 60.1
Lancer Evo I, 2, 3 4x114.3 67.1 MR2 (2001-) 4x100 54.1
Lancer Evo, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 5x114.3 67.1 MR2 (-2001) 5x114.3 60.1
Colt (1992-2004) 4x100 56.1 Yaris (all) 4x100 54.1
FTO 5x114 67.1 GT86 5x100 56.1
NISSAN Supra (all) 5x114.3 60.1
200SX S12, S13 4x114.3 66.1 Soarer (1986-2005) 5x114.3 60.1
200SX S14, S15 (Turbo) 5x114.3 66.1 Starlet (NP, EP) 4x100 54.1

September 2018 051

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THE FUTURE OF NAVIGATION...

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• Apple CarPlay (WiFi & Wired)
• Android Auto*
• Waze smartphone navigation
• FM/AM & DAB+
• CD/DVD (Audio/Video Playback)
• USB (Audio/ Video/ Smartphone playback)
• Spotify
• WiFi audio streaming
• Bluetooth Handsfree/ Audio Streaming
• 13 Band EQ
• New customisable user interface
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 The Tuners Choice
Mongoose Exhausts Systems are one of
the most highly regarded stainless steel
exhaust manufacturers in the UK offering an
expanding range of exceptionally high quality
performance enhancing sports exhaust
systems for many marques of cars.
With over 30 years extensive experience of
tuning cars, our Mongoose brand of exhausts
system are designed, developed using our
extensive in house facilities in Congleton
including our 4wd rolling road.
All Mongoose Exhausts are made in the UK
from T304 aerospace grade stainless steel,
bent using the finest mandrel bending
machines and welded by experienced and
enthusiastic staff to exacting standards.
Every Mongoose Exhaust component, be it
a down pipe, a back box, or a full exhaust
system is designed on the car it is meant to
fit – that way we can guarantee a perfect fit
every time.
UNLOCK THE POTENTIAL

Make/Model Price Make/Model Price Make/Model Price

HONDA

Honda Accord Type-R CH1 1998-2003, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4/5/6 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X
Full System with Cat Replacement £884.99 Full System without Cat Replacement £715.13 Full System with Cat Replacement £1,013.11

Honda Accord Type-R CH1 1998-2003, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4/5/6 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X
Full System without Cat Replacement £804.53 Full System without Downpipe £607.86 Cat Back £825.81

Honda Accord Type-R CH1 1998-2003, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4/5/6 SUBARU
Full System without Downpipe £759.84 Cat Back £536.35
Subaru Impreza Turbo 2001-2007
Honda Accord Type-R CH1 1998-2003, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7/8/9 Full System with Cat Replacement £849.23
Cat back £652.57 Full System with Cat Replacement £759.84
Subaru Impreza Turbo 2001-2007
Honda Civic Sport EP2 2001-2005, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7/8/9 1st Cat Back £581.05
Cat Back £527.42 Full System without Cat Replacement £697.26
TOYOTA
Honda Civic Type R FK2 2016 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7/8/9
on Cat back (RHD only) £1,120.50 Full System without Downpipe £572.11 Toyota MR2 Mk2 1991on
(3SGE engined cars only)
MITSUBISHI Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 7/8/9 Cat Back and Cat Replacement £625.74
Cat Back £491.66
Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4/5/6 Toyota MR2 Mk2 1991on,
Full System with Cat Replacement £777.72 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X Cat Back £527.42
Full System with Sports Cat £1,319.59
 

Unit 6, Newman Close, Congleton, Cheshire CW12 4TR

Prices INCLUDE VAT unless otherwise stated. E. & O. E.

www.mongooseexhausts.com
 Hang
370Z TT
I
f there’s one phrase that’s been annoying
tuners since the birth of the idea of
mucking about with cars, it’s ‘Slow and
steady wins the race’. Your mum loves to
tell you that, in the hope that it’ll stop you
driving about like your shoes are on fire,
but it’s a nonsensical concept isn’t it? Races
are there to test who’s fastest, and fast is
logically faster than slow is, well, slow.
What’s really annoying about this stupid
and illogical phrase, however, is that it’s
actually true. Just look at Aesop’s fable of
the tortoise and the hare. There are other
factors in reaching the finish line beyond
058 www.banzaimagazine.com
relentless all-out pressure. Remember in the
first Cars movie, when Lightning McQueen
refused to stop for tyres as he didn’t want
to waste time, and his rears popped? Yeah,
that’s Pixar giving you solid life lessons.
(Daniel, stop it with the cartoons! – Midge)
René Dost is a man who can give you a
clear demonstration of the importance of
patience and strategy over hysterical thrust.
His car, the one you’re looking at here, is the
first and only right-hand-drive 370Z in the
world to be running an AAM Competition
twin-turbo conversion. AAM are a US-based
outfit who developed this upgrade for the
left-hand-drive USDM 370Z, and it’s was
pain in the arse to get it working on RHD
cars. That’s why nobody’s done it, Well,
nobody until now… And while he considered
other options which would have been quicker
and easier, his patience has ultimately been
rewarded in the form of a devastatingly fast
and genuinely unique Nissan. Quite simply,
there is no other car like this.
There’s a certain inevitability to René’s
quest for horsepower, given his first steps
into the Japanese tuning scene back in
his twenties. Having bought his first car,
a ’94 Honda Prelude 2.2 VTEC 4WS, and
Time
While the waiting game
may not be as fun as,
say, Hungry Hungry
Hippos, its rewards
speak for themselves.
René Dost had to
exercise extreme
patience to complete
this 370Z, but he’s
ended up with a true
world-first…
Words: Dan Bevis
Photos: Adam Rous

totalled it not too long afterwards, he set a
self-imposed horsepower abstinence for a
couple of years before returning to the fray
with a little more savvy and experience,
buying another identical Prelude and turning
it into his first proper project car: forged rods
and pistons, race cams, wet nitrous system,
it was serious stuff. “I learned everything
about car mechanics and electrics with just
a hardcopy of the workshop manual and a
DIY spirit,” he grins. “I wouldn’t shy away
from anything. And after nine years and an
appetite for much more power, I started
dreaming about a Litchfield-tuned GT-R.”
Sure, don’t we all? Unfortunately there’s
often a chasm of difference between what we
want and what the state of the economy will
allow us to afford, and it was the act of test-
driving a GT-R that lead René to what would
ultimately become ‘Project weaponiZED’.
“At the time of trying a GT-R at a nearby
Nissan Performance Dealer, my wife spotted
a pearl-white 370Z standing beside it,” René
recalls. “Only then did I realise that this would
become my next sportscar. I didn’t even want
to bother test-driving it (but my wife made
me do it anyway), I just wanted to buy the Z!”
And so an ex-demo 2013 GT Edition with just
6,000 miles on the clock was soon sitting on
the driveway. And, you’ll be unsurprised to
learn, the reimagining of the car commenced
pretty much straight away.
“I began with the small stuff - bodykit,
exhaust, and intakes,” says René. “From the
outset, everything I’d modify would have to
be of the best quality. Bulletproof Automotive
helped me source a genuine Power House
Amuse Vestito aero bodykit from Japan,
complemented with the Nismo rear wing.”
The Amuse kit presented a hurdle or two, but
as we know, this isn’t the sort of thing this
guy loses sleep over. The cost of shipping the

September 2018 059

 370Z TT
bodykit straight from Japan to the UK would
have cost more than the kit itself, but a few
friendly chats with Bulletproof resulted in them
loading the order onto one of their freight
containers which regularly shuttle between
Japan and US, only charging for the shipment
from LA to the UK. René had to wait a couple
more months to do it this way, but he’s cool
with waiting. Better to play the long game and
get it the way you want it than to rush things.
“The exhaust had to be a Motordyne
Shockwave, with gorgeous Helmholtz
resonators,” he continues, “mated to a pair
of Berk high-flow cats, and Stillen Gen3 cold
air induction. All this raised the car to a level,
optically and acoustically, that I think the 370Z
should’ve been at from factory!”
Having raised power to 362bhp, René
opted to focus on the suspension next. A set
of Torqen S coilovers made the ride noticeably
more direct and responsive, while Eibach anti-
roll bars at either end firmed up the chassis
060 www.banzaimagazine.com
to help deploy those extra horses effectively.
Naturally things like speedbumps and MOT
ramps were becoming an issue running
this low, so the decision was made to fit a
set of Stanceparts air cups to the front too.
René was keen to keep the install stealthy,
and the compressor, air tank and lines were
hidden away under the boot floor – despite
the fact that there was already a big Bose
subwoofer squirrelled away in there! His
attention to detail is really in evidence here, as
it is with the steering wheel, which has been
cunningly reshaped before being retrimmed
in perforated leather and silver Alcantara.
Another mod which has truly altered the
driving experience is the B&M short-shifter
matched to a weighted Mishimoto gearknob,
which give a lovely clunk-clunk feel with
minimal throw.
So, with the car shaping up into a mighty
all-rounder, was René satisfied with his
achievements and happy to call it a day by
this point? No, of course he wasn’t. “It was
always the plan to turbocharge it, right from
the start,” he laughs. “I had already gone the
turbo route with my Honda Prelude; it had
high-comp pistons and FRM cylinder liners
which made forced induction unsuitable
unless you dropped in forged sleeves, so
I stuck with nitrous oxide in the end… but
the next car had to get some kind of forced
induction, ideally turbo! I had licked blood
with my twin brother’s Audi S3.”
It wasn’t an easy road though, as we’ve
already touched upon. The only suitable right-
hand-drive turbo conversion kit, made by
GReddy, had been discontinued, and although
René placed an order with US-based GTM
for a twin-turbo kit, he almost lost his money
after a six-month wait as the company was
going under. Disenchanted, our man was on
the cusp of giving up on turbos and dropping
a deposit on a Stillen supercharger kit, when
Torqen suddenly announced a collaboration

with AAM Competition to convert their twin-
turbo kit to RHD. René jumped right in with
a pre-order, essentially making his car the
guinea pig and test mule.
“Little did I know that I’d have to hold onto
my dream of boost for quite a while longer” he
laughs. “My TT kit had been sitting in my living
room in LHD guise – bless my understanding
wife – waiting to have the driver-side exhaust
manifold replaced by a modified design, along
with a few other alterations. I had such trust in
Adrian at Torqen that I would not falter. I was
determined to see this through!”
Things really started moving last July, when
the kit was finally ready to be installed
by Horsham Developments. It took a few
months more to get everything perfected,
thanks to the necessity of upgrading things
like the clutch, fuelling, braking system,
thermal shielding and so on, plus unforeseen
complications thrown up by RHD-specific
air-con hardlines and the Amuse bumper
undertray, but eventually it all came together
superbly. On collection day, René found
himself gleefully clambering into a fully
refreshed Zed, its mild EcuTek tune running
a super-safe 6psi-ish and still providing a
monstrous 501bhp and 435lb/ft.
So our man had reached his finish line now,
right? After a protracted but justified wait, his
dream 370Z twin-turbo was complete and it
was time to mosey off into the sunset? “Not
quite,” René smirks. “On my cruise back
home from Horsham Developments on a
damp day, I decided to gently squeeze the
gas pedal on a straight stretch and had the
rear end nearly break loose in 4th gear! Cold
sweat and curses overcame me, and I knew I
had to ditch the stock tyres ASAP!” More girth
was required – supercar power demands a
supercar contact patch, and after a little head-
scratching with the measuring tape René
decided to throw all of his chips on the table.
The result is a set of frankly huge BC Forged
AAM
TURBOS
The twin-turbo kit from AAM
Competition comprises a pair of Borg
Warner EFR 6758 turbos, precision-
cast tubular stainless manifolds and
downpipes, aircraft-grade intercooler
pipework, a huge intercooler with
custom-cast end tanks, high-flow
intake filters, a high-flow in-tank
Walbro fuel pump along with bigger
injectors, the necessary software to
get it all working, plus of course all of
the fixings, clamps, gaskets and what-
have-you to get it all fitted. What’s most
impressive – particularly given that the
system’s good for over 800whp in the
right setup – is that AAM boast OEM
levels of quality and reliability. So you’re
not going to end up with a highly-strung
turbo motor that goes really fast once
and then always runs rough or throws
up warning lights… this is a quality
upgrade. Of course, if you have to
convert it from LHD to RHD then it does
complicate things a bit, but thankfully
René and Torqen have trodden that
path for you now…
September 2018 061
 370Z TT
rims, 20-inches in diameter, with the rears
weighing in at a juicy 11-inches wide; these
wear 305-section Michelins, which is just the
kind of silliness you’re more likely to find on
a Porsche 997 Turbo. “Boy, do they hook up
now,” he assures us. “And EcuTek’s advanced
traction control works a charm too!”
A car built for serious performance then,
and engineered to be incredibly tough as well
as phenomenally rapid. Given that René’s
proudly done everything on this car by
himself, aside from Horsham Developments’
work to convert it to twin-turbo, it’s perhaps
unsurprising that he readily admits it’s
something of a garage queen. “This car is my
absolute pride and joy,” he beams. “It’s never
seen rain or salt, and only gets driven about
1,000 miles a year, hence showing just 11,000
miles as of today.” But don’t go thinking this
is a waste of its talents – when the conditions
are right and he takes it out for a drive, he
drives it hard. Very hard. The formidable
062 www.banzaimagazine.com
nature of the spec kinda speaks for itself, and
the obvious performance really, really does
too. “Reactions to the car are great,” he says.
“People flocking around my Zed with eyes
wide, taking out their phone cameras, whether
it’s the kids on my street, pedestrians in the
car park or the MOT mechanic, or even van
drivers pulling alongside and taking photos on
the dual carriageway.”
Slow and steady, it seems, has won the
race once again. René had to wait – and wait,
and wait – for all of this to come to fruition,
but the payoff for his patience is right here
before you: the world’s first and only RHD
370Z with AAM twin-turbos. He’s not finished,
of course; as a parting shot, he regales us
with tales of the Torqen 8-pot brakes and
Braum Racing seats populating his shopping
list. But he’s already won the game. Others
may follow with conversions like this, but
he got there first – and he did it without a
single compromise.
TECHSPEC
Engine & transmission: VQ37VHR 3.7-
litre V6, stock internals, AAM Competition
twin-turbo conversion – installed and
EcuTek tuned by Horsham Developments,
AAM Competition performance intake
manifold, CJ-Motorsports Stage 1 fuel
system, DeatschWerks DW300 in-tank
fuel pump, Injector Dynamics ID1000
injectors, Motordyne ShockWave E370Z
exhaust with optional turbo primaries (full
3-inch dual tubing), Stillen lightweight
crank pulley, Mishimoto radiator, Z1
Motorsports front-mounted oil cooler (25-row)
with thermostatic sandwich plate adapter,
Torqen silicone hose master kit, modified PCV
system with Radium Engineering dual oil catch
cans, Boulekos Dynamic Sprint Booster V3,
6-speed manual (with syncro rev matching),
B&M short-throw shifter, Competition
Clutch Stage 2 - Street Series 2100 clutch
and flywheel, RJM Performance heavy
duty clutch master cylinder, ZSpeed
Performance heavy duty concentric clutch
slave cylinder 
Power: 501bhp @ 6600 rpm (0.40 bar); 435lb.
ft @ 4200 rpm (0.48 bar)
Chassis: 9.5x20-inch ET29 (front) and
11x20-inch ET18 (rear) BC Forged RS45
wheels – forged monoblock in black chrome
finish, Wheel Mate Products Muteki Super
Tuner SR35 lug nuts, 265/35 (f) and 305/30 (r)
Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres, stock Akebono
brakes (4-pot front, 2-pot rear), Torqen S
coilovers, Stanceparts front air cups, Eibach
front and rear anti-roll bars, SPL PRO rear
anti-roll bar end-links
Interior: AEM Wideband UEGO
AFR gauge, GReddy Infometer-
TOUCH, GReddy Profec electronic boost
controller, custom vac/boost gauge, re-
profiled and re-trimmed steering wheel
by Royal Steering Wheels, KOSO EX-02
speedometer (GPS), Mishimoto weighted gear
knob
Exterior: Power House Amuse Vestito
aero kit with custom front alu skid
plates and LED DRLs, carbon vinyl
wrapped sideskirts, EVO-R Nismo
High Wing, Philips D2S HID
6000Ks, EVO-R flashing LED rear
foglight, custom black-painted headlamps
with ONEighty Halo Orb LED rings, custom
smoke taillights, tinted windows, rear wiper
delete, resprayed wing mirrors in Candy Ruby
Red, custom gas strut bonnet props
Thanks: “Special thanks go to Adrian at
Torqen for making the RHD TT kit possible
through his vision and persistence with
the collaboration with AAM Competition.
Special thanks also go to Jez and Craig at
Horsham Developments who saw through the
challenging TT kit installation.”
TORQEN specialises in Japanese performance car parts, offering the most
comprehensive selection of modifying and OEM parts in the UK. Our aim is to
provide unrivalled customer service, while continuing to build an ever-growing
collection of parts for the Japanese market.

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0% APR finance available for orders over £300 and up to £25,000

TORQEN is an Authorised Distributor for some of the biggest names in the Japanese Performance car parts market:
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Tanabe, SSR, COBB, Braum Racing, SprintBooster, Oracle Lighting, SoulFunction, SuperPro, Voodoo13, Air Lift,
AccuAir, CJ Motorsport, RaceSeng, SPL Parts, Treadstone, VMR Wheels, Cosmis Racing, Fortune Auto, Girodisc,
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Japan, Mishimoto, Cusco and many more. Check our website for a complete list of products we offer: www.torqen.uk

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BANZAI BUILDS

›››BUILDS
Projects, buying guides and all the dirty stuff…

072

074 065
066 Home-Built Heroes: Turbo Civic
Can you have an issue about forced induction conversions without
a turbo’d Civic? We think not! So, here’s one of the world’s best…

072 Staff Projects: Project Free Fiddy

This month the giveaway 350 gets down, and also a little funky!

074 Staff Projects: Midge’s RX-8

Finally he’s on it… and by ‘on it’ we actually mean buying parts.

077 Staff Projects: Martin’s Honda Jazz

Martin talks about everything except his Jazz in this one, d’oh.

079 Staff Projects: Sam’s EP3 Type R

Lots of work to do, so Sam buggers off to the ‘Ring. Good lad. 077
080 Your Builds 080
It’s time for your motors, so let’s be having you!

085 Rotary Buying Guide

Everyone loves a cheeky Wankel, right? Well, here’s how to get one.

088 Classified Ads

Could your new project be right here? Have a mooch and decide. 079

September 2018 065

 WHY stop
HOME-BUILT HERO

066 www.banzaimagazine.com
pNOW?
By refusing to settle until
he was fully satisfied with
his turbo EK Civic build,
Peter Di Bella’s been left
with undoubtedly one of the
finest and fastest Hondas
on the Californian coastline
at his disposal…
Words: Sam Preston
Photos: Viktor Benyi

E
very once in a while, you’ll meet
a person in life who clearly isn’t
as easily pleased as the average
Joe. You know the sort – those
who somehow manage to drag
themselves out of bed at 5am
on weekend mornings to nail a cheeky half
marathon before most of us have even had
half of a good night’s sleep.
It only takes a couple of minutes chatting
to San Diego-based Peter Di Bella here to
determine that he’s undoubtedly one of those
individuals that’s always striving for more.
And in his particular case, all attentions are
strictly focused towards one key area of his
life - the project car he owns at the time.
Dabbling with hot Hondas for the last few
decades, his experience has now led him
to what is undoubtedly his most impressive
build yet – this home-grown, 440whp EK
Civic hatch that pushes the limit of what’s
physically possible with this chassis. And
the fact it was all performed on his driveway
proves that you really can achieve anything if
you concentrate hard enough…
“It all started back in the Californian street
racing days in the mid-‘90s,” 43-year-old
Peter reveals. With a limited budget but his
burning desire to outpace his peers already
beginning to shine through, he began
to develop some very inventive ways of
achieving what he wanted without racking up
a tonne of debt in the process. Cue several
enjoyable years filled with the likes of CR-Xs
with huge NOS setups, as well as the likes
of Del Sols and EF-shaped Civics all coming
and going at one point or another, all before
this particular EK Civic was introduced into
the Di Bella household.
“I’d always had a soft spot for this
generation of Civic, especially the EK9 Type
R,” Peter continues, touching on the iconic
red-badged Honda that was sadly reserved
for the Japanese market. Undeterred, our
plucky protagonist eventually got his mitts
on a rough, non-Type R version, of the
hatchback he’d always dreamed of and he
couldn’t have been happier. “I didn’t care
about the condition, I was just planning to
drop a GSR motor in it and go and bang
some gears!”
Sticking to his promise and soon dropping
in a fiery GSR lump (similar to the normally-
aspirated B18 VTEC units found in the UK
and Japan), the screaming engine was also
treated to a ported head to enhance its rev-
happy characteristics. This provided Peter
with a hilarious machine to blitz up and down
the local freeways. That was until someone
offered to purchase the entire drivetrain at
a price that Peter just couldn’t ignore. “The
next day, the GSR motor was gone, and I was
shopping for new parts!” he laughs, not one

September 2018 067

 HOME-BUILT HERO
to waste any time. Using the event as an
excuse to go even bigger with his potential-
packed rolling shell, the next stage of the
build would focus around something with
a little more boost running through its oily
vein. This came in the form of a fully built-up
B20 engine complete with a humungous
turbocharger to offer up power figures
that would frankly be unheard of from his
previous setup.
“I bought all the parts I needed to build
the engine up… all the bells and whistles,”
Peter explains, with a huge pile of parts
soon sitting in his garage waiting to be put
together by him and his mates. It might still
rock the twin-cam, 16v setup we’re used to
with sporty Hondas, but the base B20 lump
was a long way from a VTEC howler even
in standard trim. Originally found in larger
cars like the CR-V SUV, the non-VTEC unit
doesn’t boast too much power out of the
box but does have a lot of things on its side
when it comes to big turbo builds; namely
fundamental strength and the ability to offer
up a lot more torque than the rest.
Fully stripped down, the bore walls in the
block were then sleeved for extra durability,
before some choice forged internals were
068 www.banzaimagazine.com
added such as Eagle rods and a shot-
peened crank (effectively applied with a
process similar to sandblasting that helps
to realign the molecular structure and
improve strength in a much more affordable
way than splashing out on a brand-new
performance part). This meant the bottom
end was now prepared for the onslaught of
a whole lot more power to be run through it.
The head, too, was given the full works.
With the budget kept low thanks to the fact
Peter managed to retain the engine’s factory
cams while adding stronger springs and
titanium cam gears, a seriously impressive
engine was starting to come together
slowly but surely. With a relatively small
turbocharger thrown on to get the car
bedded in, as well as an uprated fuelling
system and a strengthened five-speed
gearbox from an Integra, the car was
rolled into Peter’s local dyno for two days
of solid dialling-in.
Everything went impressively smoothly
as the mighty Civic was put through its
paces on the rollers, with the only issue
coming in the form of something that will
be rather who’s watched the Fast and the
Furious films – a cracked turbo manifold. “It
was a really cheap part and I kind of knew
it wouldn’t be up to the job, so I headed to
BlueRidge Motorsports who sorted me out
with a quality replacement,” he smiles.
Rocking something of a sleeper for a
while, Peter’s knack of never being fully
satisfied helps explain why we find him a
couple of years down the line preparing to
perform a full re-spray on his beloved Civic,
once again on his driveway, of course. “I
thought - why stop now?,” he says. Spurred
on by a friend and some instructional
YouTube videos on how to apply the perfect
coat of House of Kolor paint, he certainly
saved a packet in the process.
By this stage forming his car tuning
business, DiBellaworks, Peter was keen to
highlight just what he could offer potential
customers by next performing a full wire
tuck on the engine bay, which was sprayed
up in a contrasting teal to create a show-
stopping aesthetic.
Think things couldn’t get much better
than that? Not Peter, who once again used
his ‘why stop now?’ philosophy to throw
a huge 76mm Precision turbocharger and
trick new Hondata ECU into the mix. Only
now was the time right, as the engine had
 Spurred on by a friend
and some instructional
YouTube videos

BRACE
YOURSELVES
A powerful car is nothing without
a decent chassis to back it up, and
luckily, Peter’s spent plenty of time
fettling to create a machine here that
can effortlessly handle all of that new-
found grunt on tap.
APEXi coilovers from Japan act as
a great starting point, wound down
to ensure a squat stance. These are
backed up with BuddyClub camber
plates as well as plenty of strut and
bracing bars dotted around the well-
tweaked underside.
“It’s still an animal and will slide
sideways down the highway if you’re
not careful, but it performs great if
you’re sensible with your right foot.”

September 2018 069

 HOME-BUILT HERO
TECHSPEC
ENGINE: 2.0-litre B20 16v four-cylinder non-
VTEC engine, fully rebuilt and nitro-coated
block (including 84mm sleeved bores, 9.3:1
JE turbo pistons, Eagle con rods, ARP head
studs, shot-peened LS crankshaft, ACL
bearings and OEM B20 head gasket), fully
re-worked head (including OEM cams, Crower
springs and retainers, Skunk2 titanium cam
gears and GReddy timing belt), Precision
76mm turbocharger, Edelbrock Pro intake
manifold, Skunk2 70mm throttle body,
custom turbo piping, BlueRidge top-mount
turbo manifold, TiAL 44mm wastegate, Blitz
blow-off valve, front-mount intercooler, AEM
wideband, Walbro 255lph fuel pump, Fuelab
fuel pressure regulator, Skunk2 carbon fibre
fuel rail with RC 1000cc fuel injectors, EK9
Civic Type R oil pump, Koyorad aluminium
radiator, gunmetal APEXi exhaust system,
GReddy catch can, BuddyClub oil and
radiator caps, BRU hoses, Password:JDM
distributor hardware, custom powder-coated
valve cover, Spoon Sports magnetic drain
plugs, DiBellaworks custom shaved/wire-
tucked bay with custom back plate, custom
purple Hasport engine mounts, Hondata S300
ECU with boost-by-gear settings, GSR five-
speed manual gearbox, Competition Clutch
stage 5 clutch

CHASSIS: 8x15-inch (front) and 10x15-

inch (rear) custom Aero steel wheels in gold,
195/45/15 Accelera tyres, neo-chrome lug
nuts, APEXi N1 coilovers with BuddyClub
adjustable camber plates, DC Sports strut
bars, Megan Racing lower front H-brace, Full-
Race front traction bar, Project Mu front brake
pads, Wilwood master cylinder

EXTERIOR: Full re-spray in House of Kolor
‘Blurple’ Kandy blue/purple paint, OEM front
bumper with air cut-outs, SiR-spec headlights,
thin side mouldings, side skirts, rear bumper,
rear hatch and rear wing, VIS Racing carbon
fibre bonnet and front lip, Password:JDM
quick-release bumper mechanism
INTERIOR: Status carbon fibre fixed-
back bucket seats, with Mugen five-point
harnesses, Sparco leather steering wheel with
NRG quick-release hub, EK9 Civic Type R
carpet and gear knob, custom Crown Royal
gear gaiter, SiR gauge cluster, AEM boost
gauge, GlowShift air/fuel ratio gauge, fuse
box relocated to glove box, Password:JDM
carbon fibre airbag delete, Alpine stereo
proven itself for several thousand miles.
“The ECU has boost-by-gear settings,
meaning the pressure is limited depending
on what gear it’s in,” he grins. Once hooked
up with full traction, the car now develops
a monstrous 440bhp to the front wheels,
with 428lb ft of torque. Quite obviously this
makes it all sorts of hilarious to drive!
Keen to set off this stage of the project
with some suitably unique rims, a call to
Aero wheels – the supplier of steel racing
wheels to NASCAR, no less – saw some
gold beauties shipped to Peter’s house.
These hoops clearly supply the perfect
amount of bling to the ‘Blurple’ body.
“I’m 43 now, but still trip out that I have a
car like this.” Peter proudly says as we wrap
up our meeting. “And I’m not done just yet,
either!” Keen to next freshen up the car’s
cockpit to make it an even more special
place to spend time, we have very little
doubt of this Peter’s capabilities when it
comes to future work on his prized
possession. After all, he’s already proved
that you can achieve anything, just as long
as you have enough focus.

THANKS: Wired on Honda, PannAuto, RC

Injectors, WST Wildstyle Technicians, Project
Irrie, Mishimoto, Studioseven Graphics,
DiBellaworks, James Harell, Team Hybrid,
Miguel Lamas

070 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Whatever your application
Whatever your application
we have you covered
we have you covered

ENGINE PARTS (UK) LTD

PERFORMANCE ENGINE BEARINGS
Purfleet: 01708 890494 Hinckley: 01455 250222
sales@enginepartsuk.net aclperformance.com.au
www.enginepartsuk.net
 STAFF BUILDS
This one could be yours!
2006 NISSAN
350Z 3.5 V6

THE STORY SO FAR

Full steam valet, top-notch brakes,
service and loads of other stuff (nearly).

Project Free
Fiddy The only magazine project
that you could be driving
this October…

R
ight, the gearbox, diff and
engine oil have been changed,
we’ve steam cleaned just about
everything possible to steam
clean and uprgraded the brakes
to rather nice set of EBC discs
and pads. To be fair, I think there’s not a
true petrolhead on the planet who wouldn’t
be pretty damn happy to drive home in this
one already, but there’s still a long way to go
before it’ll be ready to give away at TRAX.
Anyway, with that in mind, this month
I thought I’d get on to one of the most
important, if not THE most important, mods
on the whole car. I’m talking of course, about
the suspension.
Now, I’m not saying the 350Z is comically
‘clown-car’ high as standard, but it’s certainly
getting towards some sort of minor circus
status. I guess that can be forgiven because

072 www.banzaimagazine.com
it’s more of a GT cruiser than nimble
sportscar, but even so, we want to beef up
the handling on ours… oh and make it look
cooler than a Penguin’s pink bits for the
new owner. Our weapon of choice for is a
spanky new set of PB Coilovers, and I’ve
chosen this particular brand of bouncy bit
for a few simple reasons. First, and once
again, I’ve used these on a few cars over
the years (can you see a theme emerging
here? – Sam), and I’ve always found them
to perform exceptionally well, much better
than many in the same sort of price range.
They also offer all the bells and whistles like
monotube dampers, multiple spring rates and
30-stage adjustable damping, and the only
reason they’re such a bargain is they cut out
the middle-man by delivering them straight
from their factory. Secondly, they also come
ready built-up with alloy top mounts, which
means there’s no need to risk life and limb
by breaking out the spring compressors. This
makes them super-quick to fit if you know
what your doing and, even if you’re a bit of
a spanner-swinging numpty like myself, you
should have no trouble getting these on with
basic tools and a jack.
Anyway, I ordered a full kit last month, and
they landed in less than a week. They’ve
been sitting around in the workshop, waiting
until I had a free day, although for once it
took substantially less time than I thought
to get the job done. It’s actually easier to fit
coilovers to a 350Z than you might imagine.
I’d been having nightmares for weeks about
having to strip out the acres of plastic trim in
the boot for the rear dampers but, thanks to
the forethought of the kind people at Nissan,
they mount under the wheel arches. Installing
both the front and rear kit is just a case of
dropping the bottom arms, undoing the top
mounts, pulling the standard gear off and
bolting up the new stuff. Lovely!
The only real problem I had along the way
was that the front drop links were knocking
more violently than an LAPD SWAT team and
needed replacing. The big problem for me
was that they absolutely refused to come
off. Still, after a lot of swearing and scraped
knuckles, out came the grinder and short
work was made of those too.
All in all, we got that and a few other bits
and pieces (that I’ll get on to in the next This Month...
issue), done for in time Japfest Donington. PB coilovers £599.00
Quite obviously, the crowd went wild for it New drop links £35.00
too, but we’re not even remotely finished yet. TOTAL: £634.00
There’s plenty more to do before I’ll be happy
to give it away… well, I say happy, I’ll actually THANKS:
be crying into my cornflakes when I have to www.pbbrakes.com
hand over the keys to this one!
September 2018 073
 STAFF BUILDS

Midge's
Midge Editor
2005 MAZDA
RX-8

RX-8The big bad

Mazda is back
in the game…

THE STORY SO FAR

It went bang, so it's time to get it to a
LC Rotary for a rebuild!

A
dmittedly I’ve been a little
preoccupied with our giveaway
350Z of late, what with that and
one or two mags to do, I’ve had
trouble finding the time to sort
out my own car… I’m sure you
can all relate to that one. Sometimes life and
work just gets in the way, right?
Still, this month I decided it was high time
that I made a proper effort to get started,
and that particular effort involved pulling the
car out of the yard (where it’s been sitting for
6-months or so), to get it over to LC Rotary
for a thorough rebuild.
Now, as I’ve said before, this is a weird
one for me. Normally I like having the
opportunity to cock up building my own
engines, but all this Wankel witchcraft is
something I really don’t fancy getting stuck
into on my own. The truth is that I just
wouldn’t have the first clue, and I don’t fancy
being one of those questioning the reliability
of my home-rebuild when it’s too late - on
the back of an AA lorry or sitting on the hard
shoulder of the M25. So, that’s why I’ve
chosen the experts at LC Rotary to get the
power-plant rebuilt and ported first, before I
can get on with all the other bits and pieces.
Anyway, Reece from LC was kind enough
to pick the car up last week with his
transporter, and it’s now in their workshop
waiting for main-man Lewis to commence the
greasy stuff. I’m looking forward to getting
over there for a proper lesson in rotary engine
internals sometime in the next few weeks,

074 www.banzaimagazine.com
as they pull it all apart and get to grips with
rotor tips, porting and all that stuff. In the
meantime though, there’s a few bits and
pieces I needed to get my hands on, namely
the main components that will be far easier
to upgrade while the engine is out.
First on my list was a tubular manifold and
downpipe combo, and I soon found these
for an absolute steal at Japspeed. Obviously,
the idea here is that these will flow way more
than the stock gear, which makes them an
absolute no-brainer once an expertly-crafted
LC bridge port is flowing more through the
engine. Even though they don’t break the
bank too much, these tig-welded stainless
items also come with all the gaskets and
bolts needed to get them on, and are a dead
easy way of freeing up a few horses. They
certainly look the part too!
Speaking of bargain mods that look
amazing, I’ve also ordered an alloy rad and
some silicone coolant hoses from the guys
at Mishimoto. I think it’s pretty obvious why
I’ll be needing these, and not just to make
the bay look exactly like the one I've been
dreaming about. This oversized rad may look
awesome but, rather handily, it also features
an efficient two-row core and increased
fluid capacity for far better cooling. I also
like the addition of a magnetic drain plug to
catch any debris that may be floating around
the system. Again, the silicone hoses are
also something of a no-brainer too, they’re
engineered to resist temperatures up to
170-degreesC, won’t degrade over time
and are always a worthy addition to any
performance motor. But then, you already
knew that, right?
Of course, there’s plenty more parts that I
need to source in double-quick time, choice
bits like an uprated clutch, engine mounts This Month...
and high-flow induction kit. The trouble is, Mishimoto alloy radiator £258.00
now the project is becoming a reality, I’m Mishimoto coolant hoses £103.20
finding it difficult to drag myself away from Japspeed Manifold £349.99
looking at other stuff like wheels, coilovers Japspeed Downpipe £175.99
and body mods. Today I’ll mostly be drooling TOTAL: £885.99
over this Pandem kit. Yes, I know it’s for the
facelift RX-8. I know they’re expensive too, Contacts
and I can’t see how you can ever open the LC Rotary – www.lcrotary.co.uk
rear doors. But I just can’t help myself, Mishimoto – www.mishimoto.co.uk
especially as I’ve not seen any built in the UK Japspeed – www.japspeed.co.uk
to date. I guess I’d better start saving!
September 2018 075
STAFF BUILDS
Martin Ad Sales
HONDA JAZZ
K20
THE STORY SO FAR
Engine out, bay stripped. It’s in bits!
O Martin's
ne rainy Thursday in March
2018, while flicking through
Auto Trader, my eyes locked
onto a beautiful 2002 Honda
Civic EP3 in Championship
White. And like a teenage boy
finding his first Daily Sport in a bush (yes, I’m
that old), I instantly knew I needed it. I liked it
and lusted after it so much in fact, that on the
Sunday I picked it up my new daily-driver for
a pretty reasonable price.
Driving the car home, I knew no other
motor (except my Jazz) would ever compare.
I was in love and convinced this romance
would last for years. On arriving home, I got
my cleaning stuff and got to work spending
4-hours detailing every inch of the beautiful
paintwork. Starting at black vinyl wrapped
roof and working my way down the curves
and lines to the tyres, before moving inside
and cleaning every inch until the car looked
as fresh as a day it rolled off the production
line in sunny Swindon. It was a good day.
After a well-deserved service, I put her to
use on my daily commute. For 3-glorious
months we had the time of our lives, driving
through the twisting B roads of Kent,
windows dropped, VTEC screaming in my
ears and the sun beaming down onto the
white paint. It was perfect, washing away the
stresses of life (wonderful, but are we ever
gonna get to the Jazz? – Midge).
Then one day in July, while on the way
to work at 7.30am, there was a bang. I
don’t mean a small one either, we’re talking
an earth-shaking, ‘what the frickin’ hell
was that?’ sort of almighty bang. This was
followed by smoke, a distinct loss of power
and the sound of engine bit bouncing off the
underside of the car. After pulling onto the
Bye bye White Lightning,
hello baby Honda engine bay!
Honda Jazz
hard shoulder of the M2, the RAC was called.
While waiting for the big orange van, I
thought I would have a quick look, praying
to the car gods that it wasn’t anything
disastrous. I turned my iPhone torch on and
could see a rod hanging out the bottom.
After a good fingering, I could feel that the
bearing was in pieces. That’s when it hit me
like a hammer, the love of my life was dead!
I arrived home in an RAC van with the
Civic looking very sorry for itself. After
lowering the car back down and on the drive
with a helpful push from a neighbour (he’s a
Ford owner who’s used to pushing cars), I
got straight to work.
Off came the Bumper, headlights and slam
panel, and after less than 30 seconds of
inspecting, it’s pretty obvious this one was
terminal. The block was cracked and there
was a second hole behind the starter motor,
which explains the pieces of metal I found on
the subframe.
However, the reason I’m talking about here
is that every cloud has a silver lining. I now
have the half the K20 parts, including the
loom and ancillaries, that I need to get my
Jazz properly on its way to moving. Much like
a phoenix from the flames, the Jazz will rise
from the ashes!
This Month...
RAC Cover £16.50
Heartbreak Priceless
TOTAL: £16.50
Thanks
My understanding wife and the nice RAF
fella (you were picked up by a pilot?
Cooool! – Midge).
September 2018 077
developed for tHe roAd
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ApplicAtions AvAilAble for A wide rAnge of JApAnese cArs

Innovative design and superior materials
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under braking and acceleration – all without
the harshness and vibration often associated
with other polyurethane products.
These attributes make them an ideal choice
for cars that are used for both day-to-day
driving and trackdays. SuperPro’s extensive
range of bushes, anti-roll bars, lower arms
and suspension products for Japanese cars
have proven time and again to improve
performance on the track, whilst retaining the
cars’ normal handling characteristics on the
road.
Benefits of fitting SuperPro:
• Increased tyre and suspension life
• Precision engineered for an exact fit
• Long life, low maintenance
• No component modifications required
• Improved handling and stability
• No increase in vibration and road noise
• Ideal for cars used on road and track

For further information on all SuperPro products please visit our website or contact SuperPro Europe:
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www.superproeurope.com
STAFF BUILDS

Sam's EP3
Sam Contributor
EP3 CIVIC
TYPE R

Sam’s sneaked off down to the ‘Ring yet again… no

wonder he’s always late handing in any bleedin' work!

THE STORY SO FAR

Eibach Pro-Street-S coilovers, Rigid
Collar subframe supports, Powerflex
polybushes throughout, Toyo R888 tyres,
K&N Typhoon induction kit, Cobra Sport
cat-back exhaust system, Dixcel fast-
road discs/pad upgrade, Fidanza clutch/
flywheel, MFactory LSD

W
hy have I been so terrible
at cracking on with any
upgrades I’m supposed
to be doing on my Civic
this month? Well, I’ve been
chilling at the Nürburgring
yet again of course!
Keen for a long weekend away, I decided
fairly last-minute that I just had to return
to the Fatherland before my withdrawal
symptoms got really serious. This is why
you could find me on an big, orange EasyJet
heading to Cologne a couple of Fridays ago.
Deciding to leave the car at home and
soak up the atmosphere from the side of
the track this time, the never-ending supply
of top-quality metal I (rather unsurprisingly)
spotted, gave me plenty of inspiration as to
what to do to my EP3 when I got home.
As you can probably see from the pictures,
there was the usual incredible mix of
Japanese metal both old and new present
in the vast car parks and out on the track
itself. From full-blown Evo screamers through
to a brand-new Lexus LC 500 (that looks
seriously awesome in the flesh). Basically, if
it’s got four wheels, you’ll probably see it at
the ‘Ring at one point or another. And to me,
that's what owning a Civic is all about.
As we get to the final stages of my gearbox
rebuild, I’m starting to think about ways to
sharpen up the looks of my Type R before I
return to the ‘Ring in it in October for the
track day I’ve booked. I think I might start by
switching up my now-heavily curbed and
corroded factory alloys, replacing them with
something spanky. Of course, it’s hard to pick
a set, I’ve been looking at all sorts from
classically-styled Rotas and Bolas, to super-
lightweight 2Forge wheels. Either
way, I know what I pick will
freshen up the whole car. This Month...
If any of you Honda buffs Flights to the ‘Ring £40
have any advice as to TOTAL: £40
which particular size and
style would work best, THANKS
feel free to drop me a To all the amazing motors at the ‘Ring
line. For now though, it’s which have given me the inspiration to
back to the workshop fork out even more hard-earned cash on
to get our hands dirty my car!
once more…

September 2018 079

 YOUR BUILDS

ADAM HALL’S MAZDA RX-8

BANZAI SAYS: It’s
always nice to see
someone modify a car
in a totally different way
to everyone else. Take
Adam’s RX-8 here as
a fantastic example
of this; steering away
from the driver-focused
upgrades and instead
turning his version of the
quirky coupé into one
of the most impressive
slammed show stoppers
we’ve seen in a while.
Starting with the
extensive task of
converting the car to
run on a K Sport air
suspension system,
Adam next made the
most of the drop by
speccing up some
seriously tasty-looking
WORK splits – complete
with gold hardware – to
sit under those arches.
“I then persuaded
myself it would be a
wonderful idea to do
a full engine bay tuck,
even though there were
no bloody write-ups on
how to do it anywhere,”
he smiles.
After a lot of time
spent in the garage
though, his work has
certainly paid off.
That rotary lump now
looks super-clean and,
although the car doesn’t
boast the longest mod
list on the planet, we
can’t get enough of the
simple-yet-effective look
Adam has achieved.
Loving your work mate!

MAZDA RX 8
TOP MODS: Full engine bay clean/tuck, WORK Meister SP3 split rims, K Sport air
suspension system, JR cone air filter, custom headlight air duct, stainless steel radiator
with fan cover

GARY OAKLEY’S IMPREZA WRX

BANZAI SAYS: Having
owned a classic-
shape Impreza for
over four years (before
the dreaded tin worm
started to take its toll
on the bodywork),
Gary here soon began
the search for another
example of the rally
legend to take its place.
“I struggled to find
one with everything I
wanted and started to
realise that a new-age
Impreza could be what
I was looking for,” he
recalls. That’s how he
found himself going to
check out this Bugeye,
which he admits he
instantly fell in love with.
With some mods
transferring directly from
his old car (including
the spoiler, headlights
and brakes), this time
Gary was keen to take
things to the next level,
so began shopping for
more parts to make his
burbly WRX even more
fun to drive.
You’ll now find a free-
flowing air filter under
the bonnet, as well
as a Forge BOV and
Mishimoto hoses, to
really help that flat-four
sing. On the outside,
things are spiced
up further with Rota
alloys and an STI front
splitter, while the interior
benefits from a trio of
additional Prosport
gauges as well as an
uprated sound system.
He’s keen to add even
more to his car when he
gets a chance, but for
now, we reckon Gary’s
got an all-rounder to be
proud of. Nice one.

SUBARU IMPREZA
TOP MODS: Larger rear spoiler, STI front splitter, STI headlights, Godspeed brakes,
Rota Drift alloys, Afterburner Vortex exhaust,, M2 Motorsport strut brace.

CLUBSpotlight MR2 SCOTLAND OWNERS’ CLUB

Starting in 2015 with just a handful of members, MR2 Scotland
Owners’ Club now boasts over 350 names on its books.
Set up for those who love these two-seater sports cars, the
group now attends monthly meets (usually held on the first
Wednesday night of each month), as well as shows and events
around the country and beyond.
With a strict focus on enjoying yourself above anything
else, the group’s become well known for containing more
than a few friendly faces, which may explain how it was able
to secure the 3rd Best in Show award at the recent Scottish
Performance Show. Got and MR2? Then get in touch.
CONTACT: www.mr2oc.co.uk

080 www.banzaimagazine.com
 FACEBOOK
BUILDS...
MATTHEW BEDWORTH’S
NISSAN STAGEA
BANZAI SAYS: Pro far ticked all the boxes ADAM LEWIS’ CIVIC TYPE R
photographer Mathew for Mathew.
here recently found “I now love my job BANZAI SAYS: It’s not in sticky Nankang ▲ Bas van Osta
himself losing faith in more than ever; I’ve often that we spend rubber, are nicely
the career path he’d spent countless nights a whole hour drooling tucked under each arch
chosen thanks to sleeping in this car over a car that lands for good measure.
the huge amount of in-between shoots and in our inbox, but in the Owning the car for
travelling up and down it’s been absolutely case of Adam’s FN2 just over three years
the country it required trouble free and here, it’s safe to say we and originally picking it
him to do. fun!” With plenty of were instantly hooked! up in completely stock
Using mainly Merc modifications added It might look trim, we think you’ll join
E-Class estates to get to boost the handling, fairly reserved from us in saying that this is
him from A to B for such as TEIN coilovers the outside with its one hell of a turnaround. ▲ David Keeling
a few years, he soon Driftworks camber arms tasteful Mugen body Nice job Adam!
decided what he might and a whole host of enhancements, but chip
be missing was a bit SuperPro bushes, it’s away under the surface
more fun from his daily not hard to see how this and there’s an incredible
driver. And that’s how could be the perfect spec to trawl through,
he found himself at the daily driver. one that reads like any
house of the previous As a final touch, Civic owner’s dream
owner of this Nissan those custom paint- parts list.
Stagea, where money splatted JDM WEDS Let’s start with that
soon changed hands. Kranze wheels really K20 VTEC motor. It’s
Sporting a look the nuts too! now pushing out no ▲ Gavin Catherall
turbocharged RB25 less than 248bhp,
CIVIC FN2
engine, four-wheel thanks to beefier
drive and an R33 GT-R
STAGEA breathing goodies
TOP MODS: Genuine
Mugen aero, carbon
manual gearbox, this TOP MODS: and an EcuTek ECU. fibre bonnet, Corbeau
‘RS Four S’ badged Xtreme Clutch The gearbox benefits bucket seats, HKS
estate is an extremely Stage 1 clutch, TEIN from an MFactory induction kit, Mugen
rare spec, and has so coilovers, Driftworks LSD and a lightweight throttle body, RBC
camber arms, flywheel. And all this intake manifold,
SuperPro front upper Hybrid Racing fuel
instantly tells us that
arm polybushes, rail, Tegiwa exhaust,
Powerflow induction
young Adam likes to TDI North exhaust ▲ Nick Parry
get the best from his system, Clockwise
kit, Sparco suede
steering wheel, fiery hatch. There’s Motion baffled sump,
Zilla Deathtune MeisterR coilovers MFactory LSD,
gearknob, Pioneer propping up each EcuTek ECU, MeisterR
head unit, WEDS corner, with stopping coilovers, Ultra Racing
Kranze Cerberus I power supplied by the braces, Spoon
wheels with custom Sports monoblock
range-topping Spoon
paint finish, Nankang brake calipers, SSR
Sports calipers up front. TypeC forged alloys,
NS-2R tyres
Oh, and some seriously Nankang NS-2R tyres
JDM SSR alloys, shod ▲ Sam Heal

September 2018 081

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ULTIMATE BUYING GUIDE
ROTARY
Buying Guide
MAZDA RX-7 FC/RX-7 FD/RX-8
T
he gestation of the Wankel rotary
engine was long and convoluted…
and sometimes, downright
troublesome. The format’s history
is littered with examples of
manufacturers trying and failing to
get them production-viable on a mass scale;
from NSUs with relentless rebuild requirements
to stillborn Mercedes concept cars and offbeat
Citroëns that just wouldn’t sell, it’s easy to
forget the scale of Mazda’s achievement in
getting rotary engines to work in everyday cars.
Yes, they’ve still got a reputation for fragility
(thanks, NSU), but it’s entirely unfounded.
086 RX-7 FC
(1985-1992)
These are incredibly simple engines with very
few moving parts – as long as you remember
to keep a keen eye on the oil level, you’ll be
golden. We wouldn’t lie to you, would we?
Starting with the iconic Cosmo, Mazda’s
back catalogue features many exciting rotary-
engined cars, like the Le Mans-dominating
787B and the rare-as-hens’-teeth RX-3. But it’s
the RX-7 that really put the marque’s intentions
on the map. And while the original FB is rapidly
disappearing into obscurity, largely being found
in either private collections or race teams’
garages, the FC is still easily findable and the
iconic FD positively abundant.
088 RX-7 FD
(1992-2002)
Our guide to
finding and
refining the
last of Mazda’s
iconic Wankel
screamers…
Words: Daniel Bevis
What’s most interesting, and well worth giving
credit to, is the resurgence of the Wankel
ushered in by the RX-8. When every nation
except Japan turned its back on the FD, saying
its emissions were too high, Mazda didn’t give
up on the idea. They developed a new version,
the RENESIS, with relocated exhaust ports to
help the engine sneak through US smog regs.
And while the bigwigs insisted the RX-8 had to
be a four-door, it was really just a sporty coupé
with a couple more points of entry. Despite
its unassuming looks, it’s a true spiritual
successor to the RX-7 line – with the added
advantage that it’s remarkably affordable!
090 RX-8
(2002-2012)
September 2018 085
 ULTIMATE BUYING GUIDE
MAZDA RX-7 (FC)
History
The second-generation RX-7, known as
the FC, was a big seller in Japan due to the
country’s stringent taxation system. Cars
with engines displacing under 1500cc were
significantly cheaper to tax, and the RX-7
crept well under the bar with its 1.3-litre
displacement. The truth of it is that describing
it in such terms is a nonsense, of course -
rotary engines and traditional piston engines
aren’t directly comparable in that way, their
technical function is so different. But rules is
rules as they say, so a 1.3 it is.
While the original RX-7, the FB, was a pure
sports car, the FC was more of a grand tourer,
softened up to tap into the lucrative global
GT market, which allowed it to clean up in
the USA too. It was light years ahead of the
model it replaced in terms of technology – the
old recirculating ball steering was replaced
with a rack-and-pinion setup, and the live
axle was junked for an independent rear. It
also had anti-dive/anti-squat suspension and
passive rear-steer, and was even available as a
convertible if that’s your sort of thing.

Models also had an integral windblocker and optional

Essentially, there were two models on offer
at launch: the nat-asp, and the turbo (named
‘Turbo II’). The base model had 150bhp, while
forced induction raised this to 185bhp. The
1985 facelift (‘Series 5’) ushered in improved
engine management, lighter rotors, and higher
compression ratios. Performance was elevated
to 160bhp and 215bhp respectively.
The Porsche 944 was the clear design
inspiration for the FC, and its spec was just
as robust. Disc brakes were standard on all
models, with 4-pot calipers offered on the
Series 4 Sport, GXL, GTU, Turbo II and
Convertible, and the Series 5 GXL, GTU, Turbo
and Convertible. The Convertible had a powered
fabric hood with a heated glass rear screen; it
headrest-mounted speakers.
The 10th Anniversary edition of 1988 was
based on the Turbo II – it had an all-white body
with gold badges, and a black leather interior
with a Momo steering wheel. Worthy of note is
the GTU model – this was very light (thanks to
having manual windows, no aircon, no sunroof
and no rear wiper), and came with 4-pot brakes,
Turbo II seats, a chin spoiler, 16-inch wheels, and
a more aggressive LSD.
The numbers:
• Series 4 – 150bhp
• Series 4 turbo – 185bhp
• Series 5 – 160bhp
• Series 5 turbo – 215bhp

TOP 5 BASIC MODS...

››› EXHAUST ››› INDUCTION
One of the very first The other thing you
things you should do should do to an FC
to an FC is stick on a is get it breathing
free-flowing exhaust. right. A K&N cone
Admittedly there aren’t filter should do the
loads still available off trick – or how about
the shelf, but you can plumbing in one of
always get yourself their latest shielded
along to Powerflow Orion jobs? You know
and have one made. you want to!
powerflowexhausts.co.uk knfilters.co.uk

086 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Production run: 1985-1992
Price now: from £6,000

Buyer Beware!
Rotary engines catch out unsuspecting owners
who think they behave like conventional
piston engines. They don’t. They consume TOP QUOTES FROM ADRIAN FLUX...
a lot more oil for starters, so it’s vital to get
the measure of the owner as well as the car, 1990 Mazda RX-7 FC, Value £7000
to ensure they’ve looked after that engine
properly. Comb through the history too. Don’t Young & Spritely Getting On Pushing 40
be too concerned if it puffs a little grey smoke Age: 21 Age: 32 Age:39
on start-up, and black smoke may well just License: Clean License: 1x SP30 (3 points) License: Clean
be overfuelling – but be very concerned about Occupation: Factory Worker Occupation: Teacher Occupation: Accountant
white smoke. That’ll be coolant entering the Quote: £1350 (£750 XS) Quote: £325 (£250 XS) Quote: £275 (£200 XS)
combustion chamber, and you’ll be looking at *Quotes subject to ADFTXS (Accidental Damage, Fire and Theft Excess).
an engine rebuild.
Gauges can be temperamental, so make
sure everything in the dash is doing what it’s
meant to. Check the sills and chassis rails
for rust, and don’t be surprised if you find
corrosion behind the taillights either. The
driver door lock is a common failure, and you
might also spot evidence of someone having
been caught out by this and forced entry by
jimmying around the window seals.
Interiors can leak, with water pooling behind
the seats and rusting through – a salt build-up
in the carpet is a dead giveaway. And the
solder joints on the ECU can fail, leading to all
sorts of running issues – the most common is
a hesitance to rev beyond about 3,800rpm.

››› COOLING ››› SUSPENSION ››› ENGINE SWAP?

It’s a compact Unlike many modern If you find yourself
little car with an classics, there are worrying about your rotor
overexcited motor, literally countless tips on a daily basis, just
so if you’re going to options here. If you shove an LS in there.
be spanking it, you ask the experts How hard can it be to do
need to ensure it’s though, one of the as the Americans do, eh?
not going to melt. A most highly-regarded Finding a crate engine in
Koyo radiator and choices is KYB the UK is easy nowadays,
an uprated fan will dampers coupled with but only if you speak to
help keep you safe. Eibach springs. Parts World Performance.
tarmacsportz.co.uk eibach.com partsworldperformance.com

September 2018 087

 ULTIMATE BUYING GUIDE
MAZDA RX-7 (FD)
History
The FD RX-7 really is a magnificent sports car design. The number of cars that still look fresh
when they’re over 25 years old can probably be counted on your fingers, but the FD pulls off the
trick of having hardly aged a day.
Featuring Japan’s first mass-production sequential twin-turbo setup, the now-iconic 13B-REW
twin-rotor motor offered stirring power to match a sparkling chassis, and the car’s inclusion in
the Gran Turismo videogame franchise made it an instant object of desire for petrolhead teens
the world over. (The fact that all these teens are in their thirties and forties now explains why FD
values are skyrocketing!)
The front-mid-engined layout and hot hatch-like kerb weight made for a super-agile chassis,
and the aftermarket started exploring the FD’s near-infinite tuning potential in no time at all. The
Fast and the Furious did a lot to bolster its credentials too…

Models than JDM equivalents, and the Touring X had

Brace yourself, because things are about to
get complicated. You see, there were quite
a few different variants of the FD RX-7 in
different markets across the globe. Rather
than exhaustively combing through them all,
we’ll just concentrate on the key models you
need to be aware of.
When the FD was launched in the UK,
there was only one UKDM model, which was
a sort of mish-mash of the base and Touring
models found in other markets. It didn’t sell
brilliantly to begin with, Mazda dropping the
price markedly and refunding the difference
to early-adopters; ultimately the UK ended
up with far more grey imports than official
domestic cars.
The Type R was effectively a base model
with stiffer suspension and a few extras,
while the early Type RZ offered the same
power (252bhp) but with less weight. Touring
models had leather seats, Bose audio,
foglights and a rear wiper. The EU-spec car
had a little less power and a little more weight
automatic transmission.
A facelift in 1996 brought a 16-bit ECU and
revised induction, netting an extra 10bhp. The
rear spoiler and taillights were redesigned,
and mid-period Type RZ models received
BBS wheels and bigger brake discs.
Cars built between 1998-2002 were only
available in the Japanese market. These had
uprated turbos, intercoolers and radiators,
and revised interiors. The Type RS had 17-
inch wheels and Bilstein suspension, bigger
brakes, lower weight, revised gearing, and
276bhp. The ultra-rare Series 8 Type RZ had
all the features of the Type RS, but with much
less weight – for many collectors, this is the
ultimate factory spec.
The numbers:
• EU-Spec – 236bhp
• Type R – 252bhp
• Type RS – 276bhp
• Type RZ – 276bhp

TOP 5 BASIC MODS...

››› INTERCOOLER ››› STYLING
If you’re chasing power, It’s one of those cars
a decent front-mount where you can do
intercooler is a must. very little… or a lot.
Japspeed offer various Either way you can’t
options along with plenty go wrong! If you’re
of helpful advice. Oh yes, looking for bumpers,
and how about a shotgun carbon stuff or just
exhaust while you’re about anything in-
there? That would be between, speak to the
rather epic! guys at EP Racing.
japspeed.co.uk epracing.co.uk

088 www.banzaimagazine.com
 Production run: 1992-2002
Price now: from £9,000

TOP QUOTES FROM ADRIAN FLUX...

2002 Mazda RX-7 FD, Value £12000
Young & Spritely Getting On Pushing 40
Age: 21 Age: 32 Age:39
License: Clean License: 1x SP30 (3 points) License: Clean
Occupation: Factory Worker Occupation: Teacher Occupation: Accountant
Quote: £1650 (£750 XS) Quote: £365 (£250 XS) Quote: £325 (£200 XS)
*Quotes subject to ADFTXS (Accidental Damage, Fire and Theft Excess).

Buyer Beware!
Despite their reputation for fragility, these
engines are actually super-robust thanks to
their simplicity. You’ve just got to remember
that situation we were talking about regarding
the oil! Check the history to ensure it’s had
regular oil changes and top-ups. Synthetics
aren’t great for rotor tips, so they need non-
synthetic oil of the correct viscosity.
You’ve got 32 different bushes throughout the
chassis, so you can rely on having to change
at least one or two a year to keep everything
tight. Brakes are prone to binding too, but
they’ll just need a bit of a clean-up.

››› SINGLE-TURBO ››› STICKY TYRES ››› COILOVERS

This is your route to Sixteen-inchers with A decent set will get your
massive power gains. big fat tyres were Wankel-rocket shimmying
Options a plenty here, fine in the ’90s, but through the curves like a good
but you’ll need to think the world’s moved ‘un. Again, there’s plenty of
about altering things on a bit. Level up to choices out there but BR Series
like clutches, fuelling wide eighteens, and coilovers from BC Racing
and management to enjoy some massively are always a good bet if you
suit. A shiny Garrett improved girth to want to get serious about your
T04S is a strong start get wider tyres and cornering… whether that’s
though. Lovely. all that power down. sideways or otherwise.
turbobygarrett.com nankangtyre.co.uk bc-racing.co.uk

September 2018 089

 ULTIMATE BUYING GUIDE
MAZDA RX-8

History
The RX-8 marks an interesting chapter in Mazda’s history. The firm was indelibly inked as a
champion of successful and reliable rotary engines, but to most people that equated specifically
to the RX-7 – compact, agile, nimble two-door coupés. Most people in the UK would have no idea
what you were on about them if you asked them what a Mazda Cosmo was. So the decision to
launch the RX-8 as a four-door sports saloon took the market by surprise. Models
The brand was keen to protect the sporting rotary heritage though, so it wasn’t as if they just The first generation of RX-8s, produced from
shoved a Wankel into a Mazda 6, the RX-8 had ‘Freestyle’ suicide rear doors, and was front-mid- 2002-08, was available in either standard
engined with a 50:50 weight distribution. It had a double-wishbone front end and a multi-link or high-power versions – both with the
rear, and a keen focus on lightness thanks to extensive aluminium and plastic body materials. non-turbo twin-rotor RENESIS 13B-MSP
The manual gearbox had a carbon-composite shaft, and at the rear there was a torque-sensing engine. The standard version had a four-port
conical LSD. Power may have been down on the outgoing RX-7, but the RX-8 was a genuine four- engine making 191bhp, while the high-power
seater with a cleverly engineered chassis: a driver’s car that also happened to be practical. six-port offered 231bhp; the former had a
five-speed gearbox, the latter had a six-
speed. (The exhaust ports were moved to
the side housing, thus reducing emissions
and allowing the RX-8 to be sold in markets
where the FD RX-7 had been vetoed.)
In 2006, the PZ model was launched for
the UK market – tweaked by Prodrive, it
had OZ Racing wheels, low-drag mirrors
and a higher rear spoiler, along with Bilstein
dampers and Eibach springs.
The RX-8 range was facelifted in 2008,
effectively creating a second generation that
ran until 2012. The shell was strengthened

TOP 5 BASIC MODS...

››› TYRES
The RX-8 is very sensitive
to tyre choice. Standard
OE equipment was the
Bridgestone RE040 in 225/45
R18 size, although while they
››› BRAKES give excellent grip in good
The car’s pretty light on brakes as it conditions, they’re a bit slippery
doesn’t carry a lot of mass, but a simple when wet. Toyo Proxes Sport
disc and pad upgrade from MTEC always tyres seem a popular upgrade
comes highly recommended both for the road and track.
mtecbrakes.com toyo.co.uk

090 www.banzaimagazine.com

and suspension geometry revised, and the
gearing was altered to improve acceleration.
The RENESIS II engine arrived in 2009,
featuring a third oil injection port in each
rotor housing. Bumpers and lights were
redesigned, and the exhausts were enlarged.
Worthy of note is the RX-8 SPIRIT-R – a
JDM-only special runout edition of 1,000
cars, which featured 4-pot brakes and Bose
audio, and a much improved engine: it had
twin intake ports, a bigger radiator, high-
pressure fuel pump, freer-flowing exhaust,
and uprated coils. In addition, it received a
Tochigi Fuji LSD, track-spec suspension,
lightweight Recaros, forged BBS wheels, and
aluminium body panels. Worth snapping up,
if you can find one!
The numbers:
• Standard – 191bhp
• High-power – 231bhp
››› SUSPENSION
The RX-8 is actually a
decent handling car, loads
of fun to slide about… if
you catch our drift! It is
comically high up though,
and that’s never good. A
decent set of coilovers
will sort that out, and give
better handling. Tein make
some of the best.
tein.co.uk
Production run: 2002-2012
Price now: from £1,500
TOP QUOTES FROM ADRIAN FLUX...
2008 Mazda RX-8, Value £3500
Young & Spritely Getting On Pushing 40
Age: 21 Age: 32 Age:39
License: Clean License: 1x SP30 (3 points) License: Clean
Occupation: Factory Worker Occupation: Teacher Occupation: Accountant
Quote: £1500 (£750 XS) Quote: £300 (£250 XS) Quote: £265 (£200 XS)
*Quotes subject to ADFTXS (Accidental Damage, Fire and Theft Excess).
Buyer Beware! damage in the car’s past. Rear lights can
We don’t need to reiterate the importance steam up, but this is fixable with new seals.
of checking the oil level again, you know the Interiors are well-made and hard-wearing –
score by now. So what else do you need to be aside from the odd worn driver’s bolster, there
aware of with the RX-8? Well, tired coil packs shouldn’t be any issues inside.
could be the culprit if the car feels down on
power, and it’s also worth checking the oil
cooler and air-con rads as they like to rust
and can also get battered by stones. Front
drop-links may make a clunking noise on high-
mileage cars, but this is easily addressed with
new bushes.
You shouldn’t find any rust on an RX-8,
except perhaps a smattering inside the fuel
filler or around the third brake light. If you do
find corrosion, this could well point to accident
››› MAPPING ››› BREATHING
The stock ECU is A decent exhaust is a must
too smart for most on the RX-8, but it’s best
piggybacks, so the way to go one further with a
to do it is to use a Cobb tubular manifold. To be
AccessPORT - a nifty fair, a manifold will free up
gadget that plugs into a few horses on it’s own
the OBD-II port, feeding and Racing Beat make one
alternative data to the of the most sought-after
stock ECU. It’s a remap stainless steel items on the
without the remap! market. Give them a buzz.
cobbtuning.com racingbeateurope.com
September 2018 091
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DAIHATSU
CHARADE
1992, 23,000 miles, £2,200. Full history runs
and drives as new. 10 months MoT excellent
condition in and out. Please call 01214 278730,
Brimingham.
2934
HYUNDAI
SIRION
2001, 101,000 miles, £795. Automatic 1.3 F
speed. MoT May 2019. Central locking, electric
windows. Mirrors, air con. Alloy wheels, full
factory, body kit economical lovely condition.
Always garaged. Please call 07543 460394,
Essex.
2647
MAZDA
323F
1997, 92,000 miles, £250 ONO. Good 1800cc,
twin cam engine, decent interior. Good alloys
and tyres. Body work solid exempt n/s rear sill
end lower wheel arch section. Blowing exhaust
Brake pads and oil change needed. 2 months
MoT. Please call 07762 784957, Notts.
3363
MX5
2011, 23,000 Miles, £10,999. Finished in jet
black also with blue leather seats, manual,
power steering, alloy wheels, remote central
locking, this convertible also has a hard top plus
many more features. Please call 02380 766870,
Hampshire.(T)
094 www.banzaimagazine.com
MX5
50,000 miles, £6,499. Manual, petrol, 2 door
and red. Please call 07545 703474 (T).
3004
MX5
2004, 83,000 Miles, £2,499. 1800cc Petrol
convertible. Electric windows. Power steering.
Hard roof and black soft top. Heated leather
seats. New battery May 2017. New alternator
January 2018. Service history. MOT May 2018.
Very good condition. Please call 07951 120399.
MX5
2003, 80,000 miles, £1,800. 1.6, convertible,
metallic silver, new hood, anti-roll bars, some
service history, long MoT, alarmed, central
locking, electric windows, mirror, aerial, CD
player, good all round condition and sensible
offers considered Please call 02087 642264 or
07956 578332, Croydon.
3274
MX5 ICON
2005, 99,000 miles, £2,450. Black leather
heated seats, s/history, one owner, p/s, e/w,
c/l, long MoT and drives well. Please call 07836
548731, Essex.
2839
MX5 1800 MKII
2002, 91,500 miles, £825. Four previous
owners, mine since 2010. Full MoT. Maintained
by local MX5 specialist. Silver with black cloth
interior. Reluctant sale by pensioner-owner
Please call 01142 369548, Sheffield.
3200
MX5 MK 2.5
2002, 74,000 miles, £1,450. Finished in black.
This car includes FSH, 1600 model engine,
service book and manual. The belt and all oils
have been changed, immaculate paint work, 16”
alloys fitted and in excellent condition. Please
call 07758 876673, Lancs.
1790
MX5 MK1 LTD. ED
1997, 73,000 miles, £5,995. Manual, 1600
engine size, 1 owner from new, Comes with full
service history and 12 months MOT full leather,
new hood and UK supplied car. Please call
01179 567144, (T).
2846
MX5 MK2
1999, £1,695. Gold, no rust. MOT, new cambelt,
clutch and exhaust in the last 2 years. Please
call 07799 188268, Hayling Island.
2673
September 2018 094
MX5 MKI 1.8IS
1996, 73,000 miles, £4,095 Ono. A highly
original MX5, wants for nothing just get in and
enjoy. Recent new exhaust. No welding required.
MoT till Oct 18. Please call 01322 270354, Kent.
2537
MX5 ICON
2005, 99,000 miles, £2,450. Black leather
heated seats, s/history, one owner, p/s, e/w,
c/l, long MoT and drives well. Please call 07836
548731, Essex.
2839
RX4 COUPLE
1973, POA. Pointy nose coupe, anything
considered. Standard if possible. Please call
07850 347432, Hants.
3292
MITSUBUSHI
COLT GLX
94,000 miles, £1,495. Partial history, Power
steering. Electric windows. Almost fully restored.
New exhaust and sills. Floorpan immaculate.
MOT March 19. Please call 07474 398623.
3040
NISSAN YARIS 1.33 VVTI TR
MICRA CONVERTIBLE
2006, 98,000 miles, £1,495. Recent service,
full service history. MoT March 2019. 1.6 sport,
manual. Power roof, windows and mirrors. Air
conditioning, CD, airbags and alloy wheels.
Immaculate condition, always garaged. Please
call 07543 460394. 2010, 43,969 miles, £4,690. 5 door, meteorite
2281 grey, manual, petrol, Power steering, Air-
Conditioning, Electric Windows (Front), Electric
TOYOTA door mirrors, In Car Entertainment (Radio/CD/
MP3), Remote central locking, Parking Aid,
CELICA GT AUTOMATIC LIFTBACK Airbags, Folding rear seats, Seats Split Rear,
Immobiliser. 5 seats. Please call 01384 465580,
(T).
2780
SUZUKI
SPLASH SZ2
1994, 86,000 Miles, POA. Good project car.
Everything original including wheels, radio,
interior and engine. Paint work and interior in
nice condition. Good set of tyres. Drives very
well. Please call 07597 239614.
MR2
2013, 18,000 miles, £4,995. 5 door, full service
history, only £20 tax per year, new MOT, some
2000, 80,000 miles, £3,000. Engine has been damage repaired by Suzuki. Please call 01179
reconditioned, new 17” alloy wheels and tyres. 567144, (T).
New coil covers, exhaust, brakes, clutch plate 2863
and water pump. Lovely condition. Please call
01753 889787, Bucks. PARTS WANTED
2515
OPTIMO CAETANO HONDA ACCORD REAR BUMPER
1993, 262,311 miles, £4,750 ONO. Bus to BLADE
motorhome conversion, good size, MoT October,
lovely bus just small. Bit of plumbing to finish.
Please call 07724 160147, Hampshire.
3314
ST185 GT4
Wanted. Chrome must be in very good to
excellent condition but no dints. Rubber not
1993, 76,000 miles, POA. GT4 owned for 20 important. Good and fair price paid. Please call
years. Please call 07871 646465, West Sussex. 01430 861636, Yorkshire.
3101 2729
September 2018
August 2018 095
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 WILD CARD

Goodnight,
sweet prince
Japan’s Hideki Maeda tragically passed away a short while before
this article was originally due to be published, so after much
consideration about its publication, it has been re-written as a
tribute to a great man. We hope it does him justice.
Words and photos: Chris Nicholls @ P1 Race Photography

098 www.banzaimagazine.com
H
ideki Maeda loved helping
people. Whether in his capacity
as a mechanic, magazine
editor, event MC, team
manager or driver, he never
gave less than 100 per cent
for the people who needed him. This quality
was, no doubt, one reason why he received
such rapid and extensive aid when he himself
was in need, having crashed his ZC31S
Swift Sport during Thursday practise at the
2016 World Time Attack Challenge. It was,
he later admitted, a moment of driver error,
but momentary as it was, it was still enough
to put Maeda-san into a concrete wall at
approximately 100mph. It tore apart his
front-end, bent a chassis rail and basically
left his weekend seemingly over before it had
started. However, all that aforementioned
good karma came back to help him, as a
couple of visiting staffers from Yokohama
tuner, Unlimited Works, offered their
assistance in getting the car back together,
and, after canvassing the pit lane, Maeda-
san also found suppliers willing to assist
with parts. Before the weekend was out, he
managed to get back out on track, even if
bad luck with red flags and fear of pushing
a repaired car meant he never managed the
sort of blistering lap times he was used to.
What makes this story even more amazing
is that Maeda-san spent his entire life savings
trying to get to WTAC in the first place. After
years of managing the Japanese athletes
who came over, Maeda-san’s dream was
to take his Swift to the event and try and
compete himself. To have to deal with what
seemed like the end of that dream only part
way through practise day and bounce back?
That takes a strong man with a lot of goodwill
under his belt, and it’s why Maeda-san was
also awarded the inaugural Confederation
of Australian Motorsport (Australia’s
motorsports governing body) Spirit of Time
Attack award at the end of the weekend.
Looking back on his life, Maeda-san took
perhaps a rather meandering path to get
where he was prior to his death. Having
always been into machines, thanks to his
dad’s agricultural machinery business, he
initially enrolled in a speciality mechanics
college, hoping to work in motorsport.
However, Japan’s economic bubble burst in
the early ‘90s, devastating the race industry
and ending that dream in a heartbeat, so he
refocussed and found work at tuner shop
Trial, eventually helping out with advertising
there as well. This work eventually led to
him being headhunted by San-Ei Shobo,
publishers of tuning car mag Rev Speed
(among others), where he worked his way
up from low-level organisational stuff to the
Editor’s chair. (This is where he first tried
driving a Swift Sport, which we’ll get into
later). Finally, he left Rev Speed to pursue
his dream of being an event MC, which he

W i
CARD
l d The Editor’s Wild Card gives our Midge the
chance to feature a car from the wider world of
Japanese car culture that, traditionally, you may
not have seen in the pages of Banzai.
FEATURE This month we have a feature that’s not just
about the awesome home-blown racecar that
we’d originally planned for this issue, but is more a
tribute to the legend who’s famous for being behind the wheel.
This is the story of, our friend, Hideki Maeda…

September 2018 099

 WILD CARD
studied and practised in his spare time while
working at an IT company. That business
quickly blossomed, too, with work for Top
Fuel, Dunlop and other non-car related
functions all coming in rapid succession. It
makes the tragedy of his passing all the more
painful to those who knew him.
This meandering career matched his car
choices too, as they were certainly as varied.
He may have started by owning no fewer
than four AE86s, but he then moved onto
an 850hp R32 GT-R drag car, a mildly-tuned
JZZ30 Soarer and a street/circuit S2000. He
also owned two Primeras (one tuned, the
other his ‘date car’) for extra variety, so it’s no
surprise that, when he finally got to drive a
ZC31S Swift Sport as part of his Rev Speed
work, he was open to its lightweight, fun-to-
drive charms. A later test of an HKS turbo-
equipped model sealed the deal and he fell
for the pocket rocket completely.
In terms of how he got ended up with this
car, and got it to this level of tune, the story
began in 2009, when Rev Speed partnered
with Top Fuel to see just how far they could

A test of an HKS turbo-equipped

model sealed the deal and he fell for
the pocket rocket completely

100 www.banzaimagazine.com
push a ZC31S, running near-monthly articles
on its progress. Having enjoyed the HKS
machine so much, Maeda-san and the Top
Fuel team quickly decided a turbo version
would be the best way to go, fitting an HKS
GT-SS spinner and matching manifold, ECU
and 21-row intercooler as some of their first
steps. Supporting mods like a Top Fuel front
pipe, titanium muffler, Trust 13-row oil cooler
and Blitz 525cc injectors got added into
the mix as well. Handling-wise, they initially
went for Tryforce ZC-Pro coilovers, a Cusco
1-way LSD and 9x17 +35 (f) and 8x17 +37 (r)
Advan Racing RZ wheels with 235/40 (f) and
215/40 (r) AD08s, while brakes were upgraded
with Endless pads. Further down the line,
the interior lost its rear bench and sound
deadening, but gained a Safety 21 cage,
Bride Zieg 3 driver’s seat with RH-9 harness,
Key’s Racing 350mm wheel, D-Rights
Driving Monitor (essentially an LED g-force,
accelerator and brake pedal pressure display),
Greddy boost gauge and Civic Type R shift
knob, while the exterior saw TM Square
bumpers, skirts and rear wing, as well as a
Top Fuel carbon bonnet, carbon canards and
Craft Square mirrors.
By this stage, the engine made a
respectable 305ps at the wheels with stock
internals, but Maeda-san and Top Fuel wanted
to push further, fitting a larger GT-RS turbo
for 378ps. However, circuit testing revealed
there was now too much lag out of slow
corners, so they swapped it back and fitted
256-degree (inlet and exhaust) Trust cams,
modified the throttle body to fit a 70mm S15
item, and polished the intake runners instead.
This brought the dyno reading to a nice, even
350ps and maintained drivability to boot.
Fortuitously, given all this power necessitated
better brakes, Endless had just released
their six-piston “Takumi” front calipers for
the ZC31S, so they fitted those, along with
matching 294mm two-piece slotted rotors and
MX72 pads. To further dial in the handling,
they fitted Cusco pillowball front bushes,
along with a mix of Cusco pillowball and
Suzuki Sport hard rubber bushes in the rear.
Finally, the team went all-in on the engine and
added shorter Top Fuel forged pistons (the
rods in the M16A engine were forged from the
factory and therefore still fine), which boosted
capacity to 1710cc and netted another 10ps.
Most importantly, final torque came to 282lb
ft at 18.5psi – great for such a little engine.
Oh, and if you’re wondering about the pink
cam cover, that was painted to match a pink
elephant good luck charm the Top Fuel boys
put in the car when Maeda-san was racing.
Unsurprisingly, given he wrote about a
Swift almost every month for a year (the build
finished in 2010), Maeda-san developed a
reputation as something of a Swift expert.
Indeed, his race instructor, three-time Super
Taikyu class champion Takashi Oi, even
nicknamed him Swift Ohji, or Swift Prince.
However, once the build finished, the Swift
became a Top Fuel demo car and Maeda-san
went back to playing with other toys like his
S2000 (which he kept while developing the
ZC31S). Having sold that car in 2014 though,
by the end of 2015 he was starting to feel the
need for a track toy again. And wouldn’t you
know it, in January 2016, Top Fuel happened
to be looking for a buyer for the Swift. “I
September 2018 101
 WILD CARD
TECHSPEC
Engine: M16A with HKS GT-SS turbo, HKS
stainless exhaust manifold, HKS 21-row
intercooler, Top Fuel Power Chamber cold
air intake, Top Fuel blow-off valve, Top Fuel
65mm stainless front pipe, Top Fuel titanium
75mm muffler, Trust 13-row oil cooler, Trust
alloy radiator, Blitz 525cc injectors, Top Fuel
custom forged pistons to boost capacity to
1710cc, Trust 256-degree (inlet and exhaust)
camshafts, custom valve springs, custom
factory oil pump, baffled sump, custom
intake manifold with S15 70mm throttle body
and polished runners, Billion SuperThermo
thermostat, Moty’s engine oil and HKS F-Con
V-Pro ECU, stock gearbox, ORC twin-plate
clutch, Cusco 1-way LSD, 4.235 final drive,
Moty’s gearbox oil

Chassis: 8 and 9x17-inch Advan Racing

RG-D or RZ wheels with 255/40 and 225/45
Yokohama Advan AD08R tyres, Tryforce
Company ZC-Pro coilovers with 12kg/mm
front and 16kg/mm rear springs, Top Fuel
custom rear torsion beam, Cusco pillow
ball bushings (f) and mix of Cusco pillow
ball bushings and Suzuki Sport hardened
rubber bushings (r), TM Square large camber
shims, Safety21 cage. Endless ‘Takumi’ six-
pot calipers with 294mm two-piece slotted
rotors and Endless MX72 pads (f), stock
calipers with Endless Type-R pads (r), Endless
stainless mesh brake hoses and Endless RF-
650 fluid
Exterior: TM Square front bumper, TM
Square rear bumper with carbon diffuser
element, TM Square carbon side skirts, TM
Square 3D carbon rear wing, carbon canards,
Top Fuel carbon bonnet, Craft Square carbon
mirrors
Interior: Bride Zieg 3 race seat, RH-9
five-point harnesses, Key’s Racing 350mm
semi-cone wheel, Works Bell universal boss
kit, Civic Type R shift knob, D-Rights Driving
Monitor, Greddy boost gauge, Greddy
Intelligent Info Meter, HKS Circuit Attack
Counter
thought this had to be fate,” Maeda-san said.
“I had to be the one to buy it”. So he applied,
got accepted and, on February 2, 2016, he
was the proud owner of his former project.
Having got himself a proper racer, Maeda-
san then decided to go time attacking, but not
just at any old event. “I thought, if I’m going to
enter a time attack event, it has to be WTAC!”
Normally, this would seem a ridiculous thing
to do, but Maeda-san had both the drive, and
willingness to spend his life savings, to get
there, so he did. Given his time away from the
track before its purchase, he had Top Fuel
alter the set-up slightly to be more stability-
focused, but apart from that and a spare set competitiveness for a 2018 run. It is tragic
of Advan RG-D wheels, little needed doing this won’t ever happen now, but while he may
before it went on a boat to Sydney. Of course, be gone, we can at least celebrate his life in
things didn’t work out there like he’d hoped, these pages. Rest in peace, Maeda-san. We
but when last we spoke, Maeda-san seemed hope your soul is still racing, no matter where
set on upgrading the Swift further to ensure you are.

Thanks: Before his passing, Maeda-san

wished to thank Hirano Yasuji, Yasushi
Morimoto and Yuya Nakagawa from Top Fuel
for all their work on the car, Kazuhiro Sato and
Kensuke Nabeshima from Unlimited Works for
their help fixing the car at WTAC, Hypertune,
Hi-Octane Racing and Royal Purple for
helping out with an intercooler, radiator and
coolant respectively after the crash, and GCG
Turbos, HKS, Blitz, Greddy, Endless and all
the other sponsors who helped with the car.

102 www.banzaimagazine.com
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 SKID MARKS

?
Would BANZA-I lie to you? SAY WHAAAAAT
The Honda Civic: Learn your stuff, thrill your friends Martin: “I bet you don’t get an
and be a right know-all in the pub… but don’t get offer like this at home.”
caught out by any we made up. Midge: “I’d be bloody worried if I
The Civic is one of the
did to be fair.”
longest running car names
ever, celebrating 46-years
on the streets last month.
The first-generation model
cost around £1400, which
is about 23-times cheaper
than the new Type R.

In the ’80s and ’90s, Rover 200s and 400s were based on Between
the Civics of the day and many tuning parts can be used
on either. You can even install a Rover Turbo lump in your and
Civic if you’re feeling frisky. A Honda-badged counterpart the Civic wasn’t sold in
of the Rover 200 SD3 was also the very first Honda to be Japan at all, except for
built in the UK. It was put together alongside the Rover at the hybrid version.
the British Leyland Longbridge plant. Shell: “How you getting on?”
Midge: “Not good, I can’t see the
wood for the cheese this month.”
The BTCC cars
driven by Matt
Neil and Gordon Midge: “Nah it can’t be a bloke
Shedden in 2017
may have looked
driving it, it’s an Evoque.”
like brand-new cars, but they were actually
built in 2012. In fact, for 2014 they were cut
and shut (from the B Pillar back) to make The VTEC system was
estates, and then put back to Type R spec introduced to the Civic in the
in 2015. The 2018 season BTCC cars are
brand-spanking-new though.
late 1980s with the 160bhp
B16A engine in the SiR.

The Civic has been the basis for many

other models, including 4WD options like
the Shuttle and CR-V. There’s also the
original CR-X which was only available
in the US as a 2-seater while here in
Europe we got an added rear bench. The
later CRX (known elsewhere as the del
Sol) was also based on a Civic, but this
time came as a true 2-seater targa top.
Most famously this was available with a Martin: “We’ve got a new pic of
bonkers electric ‘TransTop’. you up in the office.”
Midge: “I’m flattered.”
Martin: “I wouldn’t speak too
The 2018 Civic Type R is the first to
soon mate.”
be designed from the ground up as a
performance car, instead of being a
tweaked version of a base model Civic. Martin: “Where’s Sam then?”
Midge: “Probably modelling for
The 2-litre turbo unit in the
new base model Civic Type some catalogue somewhere.”
R puts out around 306bhp
which is only around 115bhp
more than the original 1.6- Midge: “No they’re not skinny
litre, N/A EK9, it also weighs jeans, I’m just fat.”
a hell of a lot more. That
said, it’s still bloody quick!

September 2018 105

COMING SOON
EDITORIAL
Editor: Jamie ‘Midge’ Burr
Art Editor: Michelle Mitchell

IN THE NEXT ISSUE... Contributors: Sam Preston, Adam Rous, Ade Brannan,
Ron V Photography, Ben Hosking, Steve Hall,
Adam Walker, Chris Presley, Jonathan Fletcher

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